


Ignoring Destiny

by Lolikiano



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:34:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 52
Words: 227,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23200291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lolikiano/pseuds/Lolikiano
Summary: One little change during crucial parts of the Harry Potter timeline can cause a dramatically different outcome for Harry Potter's destiny—or does it? Each character will make different choices than they did in the books and these choices may or may not affect Harry's (or other character's) ultimate destiny. Does the prophecy control Harry or does he have the free will to choose?
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Neville Longbottom/Luna Lovegood, Remus Lupin/Nymphadora Tonks
Comments: 11
Kudos: 62





	1. Chapter One: A Wand

Author's Notes:  
Hi everyone! Thank you for taking the time to read Ignoring Destiny. I haven't written many fanfictions but I have written a lot of creative fiction, nonfiction, and research stories, papers, and documents. So please, comment or message or what have you! I want constructive criticism so I can make this story great.  
Since I'm a student I hope that you as a reader understand if my postings are not always on time. I take the bar exam in July so I'm hoping to have enough chapters written and edited for posting before I begin studying so that I don't fall behind.  
This story was originally posted on Fanfiction.net but I will continue to post the story in both locations. Anyway, please enjoy chapter one!

Chapter One: A Wand  
The gate to the little cottage opened noiselessly, swinging inward to allow the robed man to walk up the pathway to the home. The light from the living room window spilled onto the grass, illuminating his way to the front door. He could hear noises from inside the house, banging and crashing. He lifted his wand, pointed it at the door, and calmly said, "Bombarda," blowing the door off its hinges.  
Lord Voldemort crossed the threshold, stepping into the Potters' cottage in Godric's Hollow on Halloween night 1981.  
Voldemort could hear a man shouting upstairs, "Lily, he's here, take Harry and go!" He followed the voice, moving through the living room and to the stairs the led to the second landing.  
The house was quaint and warm. A small living room filled with toys and games, both muggle and magical. Voldemort could see a wand laying on the couch, thoughtlessly abandoned despite knowing he would eventually come. He sneered at the Potters' carelessness; these are supposed to be the ones who have thrice escaped his grasp? The people who have created the one who is prophesized to be his greatest enemy? This will be even easier than he thought.  
Voldemort walked slowly up the carpeted stairs. There were photos hanging along the wall; two people getting married, a small baby with green eyes squinting at the camera, still red from birth. Voldemort looked away and moved over the landing, looking left and right. He saw the open door at the end of the hallway and moved towards it.  
He called through the dark, the thought of what was to come exhilarating him, "Leave your son to me, neither of you must perish tonight. If you do not fight me, I have no problems making this a quick endeavor. I do have other matters to attend to as I'm sure you know." He could feel his blood pulsing, the excitement; he could smell their fear.  
"James, please!" Lily pleaded.  
"Lily, it's the only way. Go, now!"  
Voldemort entered the room with a cool grace, his face alight with excitement and rage. He quickly took in the sight before him. The raven-haired man, who must be James Potter, was trying to hand the red-haired woman, Lily, the small child who was holding his blanket. The boy looked at Voldemort with his green eyes, refusing to break eye contact. Voldemort turned away from the boy and looked back at James just as he turned back to Voldemort raising his wand and holding his son close to him, trying futilely to shield him from Voldemort's gaze. Voldemort raised his own wand.  
"Give me the child and I will allow you both to live. There doesn't need to be any more murder tonight. Give me the boy and I will reward you greatly for your sacrifice." Voldemort said, holding his other arm out in what was intended to be a welcoming motion.  
"Over my dead body, Tom," James spat. Turning to Lily he continued, "Please, go, I'll hold him off!"  
Lily frowned and shook her head, "Not without you, James!"  
Voldemort laughed a cold, high laugh and said, "Hold me off! As if you could." He flicked his wand and knocked James back into the wall. James bounced against it, taking a knee, his wand never leaving Voldemort's direction.  
"If this is what you choose, then so be it." Voldemort pointed his wand at James and said, "Avada Kedavra"  
"No!" Lily shouted before diving to block the curse from James. The green light hit her full in the face, immersing her in the green glow, before she fell to the floor, lifeless.  
"Lily!" James screamed, falling onto both knees while holding his son close, never lowering his wand.  
Voldemort raised his wand and pointed it at the child, its cries growing louder as he called for his mother. Smiling, Voldemort says, cooly, "Tonight, Harry Potter, you die. Avada Kedavra."  
James looked up just as the green light hit the child right in the forehead and then everything was green, everything was bright and loud. Like a bomb. And then, everything was black. Everything was pain. Ripping. Everything was ripping away from him but he could still hear that incessant crying. Why was the child still crying? And it was pain beyond anything he could have imagined and he was floating, flying, above the man and the screaming child.  
Why was the child still screaming! He killed the child but the child won't be quiet. And he looked down again. And he saw himself lying, apparently dead on the ground. Bits of rubble and wall surrounding him. He tried to go back to his body, to go back into it; he's not dead, he can't be dead. He had ensured that that would never happen. And yet, he was a ghost. No, more than a ghost but, yet, less than a man.  
And James looked up at the ghost that is now Lord Voldemort and watched it leave, flying out of the house where the ceiling used to be. Where did the walls go? Harry, what happened to Harry? James thought. He turned to try to find Harry and saw him lying next to him, bleeding but breathing. He briefly reveled in that comfort before the pain overwhelmed him, engulfed him, and he lost consciousness.  
~ID~  
Sirius ran into the collapsing house, panic and fear racing through him as he waved his wand to stabilize the staircase before dashing up to the second floor. He could hear Harry's screams coming from the nursery. He was hoping, praying, that the house didn't collapse before he could reach Harry, James, and Lily. Hoping beyond anything that all three of them were alive, uninjured.  
Sirius came to the doorway that led to Harry's nursery and found it blocked with parts of the roof. Using his wand, he cleared away the blockage and pushed his way into the room and surveyed the scene. Lily lying under rubble at an awkward angle, still staring ahead seemingly into nothing. Dead. James behind her, slumped against the wall, legs trapped, eyes closed, and freely bleeding from the head. And Harry, little Harry, crawling on his dad, screaming as blood dripped into his eyes from the cut on his forehead.  
"Harry," Sirius yelped as he waded his way through the rubble and drywall towards his best friend, "Harry it's ok, I'm here, Uncle Sirius is here."  
Harry turned towards the noise and cried more. Unable to open his eyes, Harry couldn't see where Sirius' voice was coming from. "Siri, Siri!"  
Sirius finally made his way to James and Harry, carefully stepping over a large chunk of drywall and stone before scooping Harry into his arms. "It's ok, Harry, it's ok. What happened here?" Sirius asked, more to himself than to Harry, as he wiped the blood off Harry's face. Sirius noted that the blood was coming from a cut on his forehead.  
Sirius looked down at James. His friend was pale and bleeding but he leaned down to see if he was alive, his own heart pounding in his chest. James was cold and clammy, the blood warm and slick, but there was a pulse. A steady pulse. And Sirius breathed a sigh of relief before shaking his best friend.  
"James. James wake up. James! Enervate!" Sirius shouted as he shook James and then pointed his wand at him in an attempt to revive him. "Please, James, I'm terrible at healing charms and Harry's hurt, you're hurt, and I don't know—" Sirius stopped midsentence as a thought occurred to him. He straightened up and pointed his wand to an empty space in the room and said, "Mittite expecto tutorem Dumbledore." A patronus in the shape of a dog burst out of his wand and turned to him before he said, "He found them. The location is collapsing. Lily is dead but James and Harry are alive. Send help."  
Sirius watched as the patronus dematerialized, hoping he had done the spell correctly before turning his attention back to Harry who had finally stopped crying. Sirius picked up baby Harry and held him close before speaking softly, "Hey little prongs, it's ok, I've got you."  
Harry pointed down at his mom and dad, "Siri! Mama, dada!"  
"Dad will be ok, Harry," Sirius said. Sirius knelt down beside James and sat Harry on the floor before turning his attention back to his friend. He looked around and noticed the dresser next to them; he opened it and pulled out one of Harry's pajamas and held it against the wound on James' head. Sirius pressed down, hoping the pressure would alleviate some of the bleeding.  
Suddenly there was a sound from downstairs. Sirius looked towards the nursery door and then back at Harry and James. "Harry, sit very still behind me. Don't make a noise, and don't move. Do you understand?"  
Harry stared at Sirius before hugging his leg and hiding his face.  
Sirius looked back at the door and pointed his wand towards it, ready to stop whomever comes through.  
A large shadow came into the room before the person did. The shadow looked larger than it should for a human; dark and daunting. Then, someone with a large brown coat and a big black beard came through the door followed by a plump woman who Sirius recognized as the school's matron Madam Pomfrey. Sirius let out a deep breath that he hadn't realized he was holding in, his body relaxing as he turned his attention back to James.  
"Madam Pomfrey, he's bleeding an awful lot and I can't get it to stop or for him to wake up. Help, please!" Sirius pleaded with the matron.  
"Step aside, Black, let me have a good look at him," she replied as she carefully climbed over the rubble. "How is the child, is he injured in any way?"  
"Other than the cut on his forehead, I don't think so. It's stopped bleeding." Sirius replied as he brushed the black fringe off of Harry's forehead to inspect the cut. He noticed for the first time that it was oddly shaped, that it looked very much like a bolt of lightning.  
"Sirius, I'm 'ere to take 'Arry. Dumbledore says 'e's to go to his aunt an uncle in Surrey until James recovers." Hagrid said gruffly to Sirius, putting his large hand on Sirius' shoulder.  
"No, I'm his godfather. He needs to stay with me."  
"Sirius. This is Dumbledore's orders," Hagrid argued, pulling out his pink umbrella, "Give Harry to me."  
Sirius looked at Madam Pomfrey, "Will he be ok?"  
"I don't know. This is an extensive headwound. I need to get him back to the castle so I can do a proper work up. I don't want to risk doing too much with all this rubble. Is Lily gone? What about that other person?"  
Brow furrowed, Sirius looked around, "Yes, Lily—Lily's dead. What other person?"  
Pomfrey pointed behind her, her eyes focused on James, "The one under the rubble, in front of Lily."  
Looking where she pointed, Sirius noticed, for the first time, the person in the black robe under the partially collapsed roof. "I don't know, I didn't see them there."  
Sirius moved over to where the other body was and looked at the face of the person, or what must be a face since that's where faces normally are. But the features were not face like. In fact, they looked more like a snake than a person's. where there should have been a nose were vertical slits and the eyes, the blank, staring eyes, were red and slitted like a snake's. Sirius backed up and looked over at Pomfrey, "Yeah, no. I think that's Voldemort and—and I'm pretty sure he's dead."  
"What do ya mean tha's You-Know-Who?" Hagrid asked.  
"It's Voldemort." Sirius replied.  
Hagrid picked Harry up and moved to where Sirius was sitting and looked into the face of Lord Voldemort and gasped, "Well tha's just down righ' scary. Ar' ye sure 'e's d—dead?"  
Sirius kicked the body and it moved forward and then back, yielding and broken. "Yeah, he's dead. What the hell happened here?"  
"I don't know but I need to get 'Arry to Surrey."  
Sirius turned back to Hagrid, holding his arms out, "Hagrid, please, he belongs with me; I'm his godfather."  
"I'm sorry, Sirius, it's Dumbledore's orders."  
"Can I at least say goodbye?" Sirius plead.  
Hagrid held Harry out while Harry reached for Sirius, "Siri! Stay! Mama, Dada!"  
Sirius took Harry and held him tight, "I'm sorry, Harry, you need to go with Hagrid. I need to stay and make sure your dad is ok, alright? We'll pick you up soon, I promise. I love you Harry."  
With tears in his eyes Harry shook his head, "No, Siri, no go. I stay! Mama, Dada, Siri, Reem-Shush!"  
Sirius pried Harry's hands off of him and passed him back to Hagrid while Harry reached for him. Sirius' heart breaking, he turned away from Harry. "Take my bike, Hagrid. I won't need it right away and it'll get you there faster and more safely."  
"Thank you. James will be ok." Hagrid said as he left the room.  
"Sirius, I'm going to be transporting James to Hogwarts so I can give him better medical attention. I need your help apparating there."  
Peter. Sirius thought. I need to find Peter. That the hell happened? "Madam Pom—"  
"Call me Poppy, please. We need to go now!" Poppy attempted to lift James on her own so that she could transport him but nearly dropped him in the process. Sirius bent over to help her.  
"Poppy, then," he said as he helped her lift James. "There's something I need to do; someone I need to find."  
"And that's more important than getting this man medical attention? Well, then, I will get him to Hogwarts on my own."  
Sirius paled and looked down at James whose head was lulling to the side, his face white and sunken. "No, no it can wait."  
"I'm glad to hear it. Now help me apparate to Hogwarts." Poppy put her arm around James on one side, Sirius on the other, and they both turned on the spot and disapparated from Godric's Hollow.


	2. Chapter Two: Sirius Stays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Hi everyone! I've decided to post the second chapter the same day as the first since I've already written it. I'm hoping that seeing where all of this is going will help convince you to keep reading!  
> If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm hoping that each chapter title indicates what different choice a character made. For example, in chapter one James kept his wand on him instead of throwing it on the couch like he did in the actual story. In this one, Sirius stays with James. I want to show how these choices affect (or don't affect!) the outcome of the story.  
> Thanks for making it to the second chapter and for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like and review!

Chapter Two: Sirius Stays  
Sirius and Poppy appeared in front of the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade supporting the unconscious James just as the sun was beginning to rise over the mountains in the east. Poppy used her wand to levitate James a foot or so off the ground so they could move more freely. They looked at each other before beginning the long trek up to the castle, James levitating in front of them.  
They walked quickly because, even though James was no longer bleeding, they still had no idea to what extent his head was injured in the explosion. Sirius' mind was still preoccupied with finding Peter, with figuring out how the Potters' hiding place had been discovered. Only Peter could have divulged that information which means that Peter could be seriously injured or even dead.  
"Poppy, is Dumbledore at the castle? I need to speak with him when we arrive."  
"I'm not sure. When he sent Hagrid and I out, he left to go somewhere but said he would be back. He didn't tell us where he was going or how long he would be gone."  
"I think someone else could be hurt. I'm not sure how Voldemort could have found James and Lily without harming their secret keeper." Sirius said, more so speaking his thoughts out loud than making conversation to Poppy.  
"Unless the secret keeper was working with You-Know-Who." Poppy responded, glancing at Sirius. "Weren't you the Potters' secret keeper?"  
Sirius shook his head and looked Poppy in the eyes, "No. They wanted me to but I convinced them to use someone else. I was worried I was too obvious of a choice. This is all my fault."  
"If you weren't secret keeper, how is this your fault?"  
"If I had been secret keeper, they wouldn't have been found." Sirius replied.  
Poppy shook her head, "If You-Know-Who really did go after their secret keeper and tortured them, then that would have been you. He would have found them regardless."  
Sirius' eyes darkened; this wasn't making any sense to him. Peter would have done exactly what he would have…right? "He wouldn't have because I would have died rather than tell him what he wanted to know."  
"Then you're a stronger man than most."  
A stronger man than most. Those words reverberated in Sirius' mind as he tried to piece everything together as they walked through the entrance hall of Hogwarts and headed towards the hospital wing. Everything in the castle was eerily quiet; the air was still and the sun bright in the windows of the November morning. Cold fall air billowing about, bringing fallen leaves with it.  
Sirius looked over at Poppy as they entered the hospital wing and walked to a bed close to the matron's office, he wondered if she would be able to help James, to heal him, or if he was going to lose another friend. He helped Poppy lay James on the bed and then fell into a chair, putting his head in his hands.  
There had been a spy in the Order. Someone no one suspected who was leaking information back to Voldemort and his supporters. Someone who knew where James and Lily were hiding. Someone that no one suspected. No one… The thought came to Sirius quickly; the revelation was both painful and clear. Peter had been the spy. Peter sold out James and Lily. Peter was in league with Voldemort. Peter is still out there, somewhere. I need to find him.  
Sirius jumped up, scaring Poppy who was bent over using her wand to examine James. She looked up at him, "What are you doing? Sit down. I'm going to give you a calming drought as soon as I'm done with this examination."  
"Poppy, I figured it out. I need to go find Peter. He's been the spy all along," Sirius said quickly as he began running towards the door. But before he could reach it, the door burst open and three people stepped into the room, wands pointed directly at Sirius.  
"Sirius Black! You are under arrest with the charge of aiding and abetting He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in his murder of Lily J. Potter and his attempted murder of James Andrew Potter and Harry James Potter. Drop your wand and please come with us."  
Sirius held his hands up and dropped his wand, "You've made a mistake. It's Peter Pettigrew you want!"  
Dumbledore walked into the room and moved out of the way of the two aurors. He fixed his blue eyes on Sirius as he peered over his half-moon spectacles, "Sirius, you were their secret keeper. This was no secret amongst those of us who knew where they were hiding. You are the only person would could have told Voldemort where they were hiding with Harry. Please, don't fight the aurors an—"  
Sirius cut Dumbledore off, pleading, "No, I wasn't their secret keeper. It was all a rouse so no one would really know who they had chosen to keep him safe. He's a spy, I understand that now." The aurors took Sirius' wand and bound his hands with a wave their own. "Please, Dumbledore, you need to believe me. Peter is out there and I need to find him! He did this to James, he sold them out, all of them!"  
Dumbledore watched as the aurors drug Sirius out of the room, "Stop!"  
The aurors looked at Dumbledore and the one who spoke before said, "I'm sorry, Dumbledore, this isn't your call. We have orders to bring him to the ministry for questioning. He's looking at several years in Azkaban, maybe even life."  
Dumbledore frowned, "This is true, Kingsley, but if he is an innocent man—will he be given a trial?"  
The man Dumbledore addressed as Kingsley frowned, "I'm not sure if he'll get a trial. Crouch has been expediting most of You-Know-Who's followers straight to Azkaban after questioning."  
"And if we can prove that what Sirius says is true?"  
"It would take a lot to prove that, Dumbledore, and you know that. Using Sirius' memories—that wouldn't prove anything. A skilled wizard can alter their memories magically, or have someone else to do it. If he was in league with You-Know-Who, well, his memories can't be trusted. We would need James Potter's memories and testimony."  
"What about Veritaserum?" Sirius asked, "I'll take that! That will show I'm telling the truth, right?"  
"I wish I could say yes. But, again, a skilled wizard would have taken the precaution of building an immunity to the potion or, more likely, taken the antidote ahead of time. You could have already taken it." Kingsley replied.  
"Well, how long does it last?" Dumbledore asked curiously.  
"If it was brewed well, by a skilled potioneer and, depending on the batch made, it could be for the life of the person in question. We couldn't know until after Veritaserum was administered and someone could fake the effects of the potion." Kingsley looked at Dumbledore, "You would need someone else to testify. You, if you have knowledge, James, or even if you found Peter Pettigrew. But nothing from Sirius in his defense will work. I'm sorry. It's out of my hands."  
Dumbledore nodded, "I understand, Kingsley." Dumbledore turned to Sirius, "I will do everything in my power to get to the bottom of this issue, Sirius. Where was Peter in hiding at? I will start there."  
"He got a flat in muggle London. I have the address written down at my house. Or Remus would have it. He could take you there." Sirius paled, realization dawning on him, "Does Remus know? Someone needs to contact him. Please, James can't wake up by himself. Not with Lily…"  
"I will contact him, Sirius. Please, cooperate with the aurors until I can get to you." Dumbledore assured Sirius.  
Sirius nodded and allowed the aurors to take him away as he looked back at his friend one last time.  
As Sirius was led away, Dumbledore turned his attention to Poppy who was now pouring potions down James' throat and twirling her wand in the air above him.  
"What is the extent of his injuries, Poppy? Will he pull through?"  
Poppy began circling her wand over James' head, muttering incantations. Once she finished, she turned to Dumbledore and replied, "He has severe injuries to his head and brain as well as a fracture in his left leg. His foot was completely crushed by the roof that fell on him. I've given him skele-gro so those should be right as rain soon. The injuries to his brain, though. I've had to put him into a coma for the time being. I won't know of the extent of the damage until he's conscious and I can do a cognitive work up. He could have some impairments; his magic might not recover. I just don't know. We may have to move him to Saint Mungos if he doesn't improve. What about the boy, Harry, where will he go until I can get James back to himself?"  
"He is being taken care of. He's in the care of his mother's family," Dumbledore replied, smiling.  
Poppy frowned, "Wasn't Lily a Muggleborn?"  
"Yes, that's correct."  
"Harry is with muggles?"  
"That is correct," Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he looked at Poppy over his halfmoon spectacles, "Professor McGonagall also asked me this question earlier. Harry is where he needs to be, where he is safest."  
"But, wouldn't he be safer with our kind? With someone who understands him? You-Know-Who is dead, he can't get to Harry now."  
"Sometimes, Poppy, things aren't always as they seem." With that, Dumbledore walked out of the hospital wing leaving behind a very confused matron.


	3. Chapter Three: Only One Murder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Hi everyone! I know these first few chapters have been published super quickly but that won't be an all the time thing! I have several chapters written already and I wanted to post two to develop some of the story for you guys. This chapter is going to be my regular weekly post. I'm hoping to upload on Fridays because I know I don't work and it gives me all of Thursday between classes to edit and review the chapter before posting.  
> I hope you guys like this chapter! I got the idea for James' predicament from a show called House M.D. It's an American medical show about a surly doctor who cures weird and random diseases.  
> And a special shout out to those of you who have favorited my story! Thank you! I'm looking forward to writing more.

Chapter Three: Only One Murder  
James Potter awoke in a dimly lit room. His entire body was sore and stiff, his head pounding. He tried to move, to get up or call for help but nothing happened. He tried to look around the room but couldn't see much beside the ceiling above him. There was no noise, nothing but this soreness and pain.  
He laid like that for hours it seemed, maybe days. He was trying to remember what happened. Something exploded, he remembered that and Harry was there. And Lily. Where is Lily? Shouldn't she be by his side crying about how he was injured? No. She must be with Harry. He would need someone to watch him. When will someone come to check on him? He needs help.  
James continued to lay in that bed silent and trapped. To him it felt like days, maybe even years, but to the nurses at Saint Mungos it was only an hour when, finally, one of them opened the door and walked into his private ward. James tried to look towards the sound, desperate to get the healer's attention. But he couldn't.  
"Well, Lord Potter, let's see how you're doing since we last checked on you. I think we have another round of potions for you today," the healer said to James.  
James tried to respond, to make any noise. He couldn't. Please, give me the potions. Look at me!  
The healer brought the potions over to James and tilted his head up so that he could put them into James' mouth. It wasn't until the healer put the second bottle to James' lips that he noticed that James' eyes were open, that he was aware of everything around him.  
"Lord Potter! You're awake! Why didn't you say anything?" the healer asked. "Healer Smith, come in quick, Lord Potter is awake!"  
A team of healers rushed into James' room and immediately began a work up on him. They waved, twirled, and circled their wands over him while muttering spells and incantations and administering potions.  
"Lord Potter, can you move your fingers or toes for us? Can you say anything?" the healer that was called Smith asked James.  
James blinked and tried to move his body or say something but nothing was working.  
Healer Smith gave James a sad smile, "That's ok Lord Potter. We're hoping we can fix this. You received a severe brain injury two years ago and you've been in and out of consciousness since then. We've had high hopes that once your body healed and repaired itself that you would be functional again. Now it's just a matter of healing the part of your brain that isn't letting you move. For now, can you blink once for yes and twice for no so we can have some form of communication?"  
James blinked once but his fear grew and his heart raced. Two years? That's not right. Everything just happened. Two—Harry, Lily. Where are they?  
"I'm sure this probably seems scary to you. Waking up completely after two years can be a jarring experience. Do you remember anything from the night You-Know-Who attacked you and your family?" Healer Smith asked.  
Yes. James blinked once.  
"Good! Well, after Sirius Black and Poppy Pomfrey brought you to Hogwarts Poppy did everything she could for you there. And then Sirius Black was arrested for being a follower of You-Know-Who. He's the one who told You-Know-Who where you were."  
James blinked rapidly. No. Sirius wouldn't do that.  
Healer Smith, oblivious to James, continued, "The world isn't sure where your son, Harry, went. Dumbledore assured us, as your healers, that he will be well taken care of until you're better. Remus Lupin visits you from time to time when he can. And Minerva McGonagall, too. You've woken up a few times in the last two years, but you've never been awake enough to communicate with us. We hope to have you out of here in a few days, a week at most. Is there anyone we should call for you?"  
Yes! Call Remus, Dumbledore, anyone! James thought as he blinked once for yes, his eyes still wide.  
"Wonderful. Is that person someone I said visits you?"  
James blinked once and then paused before blinking twice.  
"Yes, they're on the list and no they aren't?" Healer Smith asked, his brow furrowing, "I'm sorry I'm not following. Do you want us to call Remus Lupin in?"  
James blinked once.  
"Wonderful! We'll have him come immediately," Healer Smith turned around and continued, "Healer Donovan, can you please floo Remus Lupin and have him come in for Lord Potter? Thank you," he turned back to James, "Now, let's see if we can figure out what's wrong with you, ok?"  
James blinked once. Hurry.  
~ID~  
Remus stumbled out of the fireplace at Saint Mungos and into the lobby and caught himself on a nearby chair. He never manages to come out of the floo on his feet.  
To get his bearings, Remus glanced around trying to find the stairs. He needed to get to the fourth floor and to James, the healers had told him he's woken up.  
Seeing the stairs, Remus rushed over and up them until he reached the fourth floor. Then he dashed down the hall and around the corner, skidding to a stop at the door to James' ward. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and stepped inside.  
The first thing he saw was that not much has changed other than the fact that more healers than normal were occupying the space around James' bed. Three or four healers were either waiving their wands over James or looking over documents in files. Remus walked over to a healer he recognized held out his hand.  
Healer Smith looked up at the noise and smiled, extending his hand to Remus', "Mr. Lupin, so good to see you. And finally under better circumstances! I'm sure you've heard, Lord Potter has finally woken up."  
Remus shook Healer Smith's hand and then ran his fingers through his golden locks, "I received the floo call. How is he, why is he still just lying there?" Remus glanced at James, concern growing in him, "Shouldn't we get him up and moving around? He's been lying there for two years now."  
Healer Smith's smile faltered and fell, "Well, therein lies the issue. You see, he's woken up but he can't move or speak. He can communicate by blinking and that's really the extent of it. We call this locked in syndrome. It's not overly common amongst the muggles who gave this problem its name, and even less common among wizards. This only happens to wizards in cases of severe head trauma; which James did receive that night."  
Remus sat in the chair next to James, his eyes scanning his friend's body before looking into the pale, blue eyes. The blue eyes bore into the golden ones, unmoving. "James," Remus breathed, "James you're awake."  
James blinked once at Remus before looking at Healer Smith imploringly.  
"Ah, right. We've come up with the code for communication. One blink is yes, two is no. It's hard to get information out of him, but it's working well enough until we can figure out what's wrong. I think we're on the verge of the answer. We're waiting to see what the results of the latest test are before we try any other potions."  
"Oh, well, that's sensible I suppose. Once he's better, he'll be able to leave?" Remus asked.  
Healer Smith smiled again and said, "We'll want to keep him for 24-48 hours observation but, assuming he does get better, yes he can leave after that."  
Remus looked back at James and took his friend's hand, "James, are you in any pain? Is there anyone else I can have come to you? Did they tell you what's going on?"  
James blinked once, paused, blinked once, paused, and then blinked once again.  
"Who do you want in?"  
James stared at Remus, closing his eyes slightly as if trying to figure out whether Remus was intentionally being a smart ass or not. Remus, catching this, ran his fingers through his hair and said, "Sorry, I forgot, yes or no questions. Do you want someone whose name is at the beginning of the alphabet?"  
James blinked once.  
"Is it someone with a name from A to F?"  
James blinked once, again.  
"Well, that rules out Peter and Minerva. Harry?"  
James blinked once and then paused before blinking twice.  
"You want to see Harry but, why no? Is there another person?"  
James blinked once.  
"Same section of the alphabet?" James Blinked once, "Ok, er, not Molly…Arthur Weasley?"  
James blinked twice. "Dumbledore?" One blink, "Dumbledore? Ok that I can do. As for Harry, he's been living with Lily's sister and her husband. I don't think I can get him in here. They don't like magical people visiting him or bothering them," Remus turned to Healer Smith, "Can someone floo Dumbledore and have him come in for James?"  
"Of course! Healer Donovan, can you make that call?" Healer Smith said.  
Remus looked back at James, taking in the sight before him. If his friend wasn't so ill, Remus might have thought that James being able to see and hear everything going on, to understand it, but not be able to move or react was comical. This would have been a Marauder style joke; the one of the century! Maybe that could be something to look into once James was back on his feet. But now, seeing James lying in the hospital bed was anything but comedy inducing.  
Remus squeezed James' hand again as he saw his friend's eyes look towards him. He smiled at James, trying to reassure him that everything would be ok, when the door to the ward opened again and Healer Donovan came back into the room.  
"Dumbledore said he was on his way. He thinks he might know why Lord Potter has been stuck like this since he woke up," Healer Donovan said.  
Remus let out a deep breath, "Thank you. I'm sure Dumbledore can fix this, er, minor inconvenience?"  
James simply glared at Remus which caused him to chuckle at James.  
"Clearly your sense of humor has been effected with all of this. We'll have to fix that right away."  
Remus sat next to James for some time before the door to the ward finally opened again. This time, a tall, thin man with a long white beard and halfmoon spectacles crossed the threshold. Albus Dumbledore took a seat next to Remus and inspected James over the rim of his glasses, his eyes twinkling.  
"Well, James, it seems you've gotten yourself in quite the predicament, wouldn't you say?" Dumbledore said.  
"Do you have any idea what might be wrong with him, Professor?" Remus implored.  
Dumbledore turned towards Remus and smiled, "Albus, please. You are no longer my student, Remus, and, therefore, you do not need to address me as 'professor'. As to whether I have any idea what's wrong with James, indeed I do. I believe his body is simply catching up with his brain. I think he woke up faster than his body had intended him to and he will begin to regain movement and control over his muscles over the next several hours and days. But I am not a healer and so I'm sure they will want to continue to run tests on James until such a time as he begins to regain that control."  
"Do you really think it's that simple?" Remus asked, his eyes widening.  
"Yes I do. However, whether I am right is another question all together, isn't it? In any case, I do have some time and so perhaps I will keep you and James some company to see if my theory is correct. That is," Dumbledore looked back at James, "if James is ok with that?"  
James looked at Dumbledore for a few seconds before blinking once.  
"Perhaps we should discuss some matters while you attempt to regain your ability to speak. I could start with the repercussions from that night at Godric's Hollow if you would like?" Dumbledore asked, his face solemn.  
James blinked once and tried to nod his head. He succeeded in a slight twitch but nothing more.  
"Wonderful. See, you are already regaining some movement. To begin I think you will be curious about where your son, Harry, has been residing."  
James, regaining some of his movement, nodded stiffly at Dumbledore and tried to open his mouth to speak. He succeeded in letting his mouth lull open, a bit of drool coming out. Remus burst out laughing at this sight, laughing so hard he had to put his head in his hand.  
Once Remus had finished laughing, Dumbledore continued, "I do enjoy that even in dark and sad times we are still able to find humor in our situations. Thank you, James, for that. As to Harry; he has been living with Lily's only surviving family since that night. He has been living with Petunia and Vernon Dursley for 2 years now. He is now three years old and seems to be a well-adjusted and happy child who, I'm sure you would be pleased to know, has shown signs of having strong magic."  
James looked at Dumbledore before a raspy and soft voice escaped his lips. That voice said, "A—and Lily?"  
"Oh good, you can speak! That's quite the improvement. I'm sorry, James, Lily died that night in Godric's Hollow. She gave her life to protect you and Harry from Lord Voldemort. Unfortunately, the events of that evening are a mystery to everyone. The only events anyone knows happened is that Lily died and that Harry, somehow, defeated Lord Voldemort on that Halloween night in 1981."  
Tears welled in James' eyes as he looked back and forth from Dumbledore to Remus and back. He shook his head and said, "No. No, she can't be dead."  
"I'm sorry, James, she was gone the moment the curse touched her. But she did leave something behind."  
Remus' head snapped towards Dumbledore, his mouth agape, "What do you mean she left something behind? I was never told of that."  
Dumbledore smiled as he looked back and forth between James and Remus, "Well, it's not a physical thing she left behind. She left her protection on both James and Harry. A protection so strong that it shielded them from Voldemort's curses that night. This is why I placed Harry in the care of Petunia."  
"Is that how I survived that night?" James asked.  
"I believe it is. But you would know that answer better than I because I wasn't there. You were. What happened, James?"  
James thought for a moment, his eyes distant. Then he shook his head and turned it back towards Dumbledore, "I don't remember much; it's bits and pieces. I remember that our alarm went off and I was glad I had decided not to put my wand aside earlier that night like Lily had. I—I'm not sure what would have happened if I had done that. But we, we went up to Harry's room and I was trying to get Lily to take Harry and apparate somewhere safe with him. I don't remember why I couldn't, or wouldn't, take all three of us. And then…I remember Voldemort coming into the room and bright lights and then Harry was bleeding and there was this, ghost thing, leaving the house. And then I woke up here."  
"A ghost thing?" Dumbledore asked, all sign of humor leaving his face, his eyes suddenly alight with curiosity.  
James' brow furrowed, "Yeah. It was screaming and floating and it was see-through. It wasn't corporeal but it also didn't look like any of the ghosts from Hogwarts. I don't know how else to describe it. I'm sorry."  
"James, this is very important. Was that ghost thing in the house before Voldemort attempted to kill Harry?"  
"I—I don't think so. I don't remember it being there before the house…the house exploded."  
Dumbledore sat back in his chair; his eyes distant as he twirled his wand around in his fingers. "Curious." Was all Dumbledore had to say on the matter.  
James, confused, asked, "What's curious, Sir?"  
Dumbledore smiled at James, his eyes twinkling behind his halfmoon spectacles, "Just an idea, James. I'm sure it means nothing. Thank you for sharing this with me. I do think it's time I took my leave, though. Please, have a wonderful day and I wish you all the speed in recovering."  
Dumbledore stood up and moved towards the door when James stopped him, "Sir. Please. When I'm released from Saint Mungos, I want to pick Harry up and take him—take him home. He should be home with me."  
Dumbledore turned back towards James before saying, "I'm sure we can discuss that when the time comes. However, I think you will have some matters that need addressed before you pick up Harry." Dumbledore turned to Remus and inclined his head, "Goodbye, Remus."  
Remus nodded back towards Dumbledore, his golden eyes locked on the blue, "You, too, Albus."  
Turning on his heel, Dumbledore walked out of the ward just as Healer Smith was returning.  
"Well, Lord Potter, how are we feeling now?" Healer Smith asked as he walked towards James who was partially sitting up in his bed. "Lord Potter! This is quite the recovery! When did this happen?"  
"While Dumbledore was here. He thought that I maybe woke up too quickly for my body and that it hadn't quite caught up to the fact that my brain was awake."  
Healer Smith crossed the room and began making intricate movements with his wand over James. When he was done, he stepped back and smiled, "I do believe that Dumbledore was correct. It seems like your body is beginning to regain motor function. You should have full functionality by this evening and be able to be released by tomorrow night if all goes well."  
James let out a sigh of relief, "Thank you Healer…?"  
"Smith, Lord Potter. Healer Smith."  
"Thank you, Healer Smith. For everything."  
Healer Smith nodded before exiting the room again. James turned to look at Remus, worry growing in his chest, "Remus, where's Sirius? Why isn't he by my sick bed crying over my inability to move or tell him that he's a prat?"  
Remus looked into James' eyes, his lips pursed, as he thought about how to respond. Really, how does one explain to their best friend that their other best friend betrayed him and sold out his young family to the evilest man since Grindelvald? Finally, Remus spoke, "James, I think we have a lot to discuss. I'm sorry. I didn't want to believe it but, Sirius is the reason that Lily is dead and you're in the hospital. He betrayed you; he betrayed all of us."


	4. Chapter Four: Ministry Adventures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Guess what guys? SURPRISE UPDATE! My goal is to have two chapters done per week. This gives me the weekly update plus a stored chapter to be able to continue weekly posting during the bar exam. HOWEVER! Whenever I'm able to write 3 or more chapters in a week, you guys will be given a SURPRISE UPDATE! And since I'm already half way through chapter five (which would have been my second chapter as described above) I know I'll get through at least chapter 5 and 6 this week. Therefore…..you get a special update! Yay!  
> First off, I know that there's a real Duke of Roxburghe but I wanted to make sure James had a title that makes sense. I feel that the magical and muggle world intermixes more than we would think and that many of the heads of the pure blood families would have important titles like that so I just picked a cool sounding one from Scotland.  
> Now that you've all been subjected to my ramblings; I hope you enjoy this chapter and don't hate me too much for the cliffhanger I'm dropping on you 😊.

Chapter Four: Ministry Adventures  
A week later James finally stepped out of Saint Mungos and into Muggle London. The busy street seemed odd to him; all the noises and sights that he was unaccustomed to anymore.  
James looked at Remus who was walking next to him as they headed to a pub down the street. They had a lot of things to figure out before James could even think about heading back to Potter Manor. Sirius, Harry, Peter, Lily. So much had happened that James was unaware of until just a week ago, so many things that he needed to fix before everything got worse. And then there was the issue of Voldemort—would he ever come back?  
Remus and James entered the pub and were quickly seated by the host at the stand. They both slid into a booth, looking at the menu. When the waitress came by, both men ordered a Guinness and a burger with fries. The waitress scurried off to enter their order, quickly returning with their pints.  
James finally looked across the table at Remus, sipping on his beer, and began, "How do we get him out. He didn't do what everyone is claiming he did. Sirius would never betray Lily and I. I mean, there's no way he could have! He wasn't even our secret keeper!"  
"I don't know, James. The evidence was overwhelmingly against him. Even I wondered if he had actually done it, Prongs. I'm ashamed to admit that. Until you woke up and told me that he wasn't the secret keeper—James I'm beyond ashamed. I haven't been there for him; what he must think of me," Remus replied, running his fingers through his hair.  
"Remus," James said, clasping his hand on his friend's shoulder, "I'm sure Sirius understands. Or he will, anyway. How could you have known? We kept it a secret, even from you, because the less people who knew, the easier it would be to hide the switch. We thought we were being smart, pulling one over on Voldemort. I guess we really didn't, did we? Didn't they give him a trial? Surely his memories or—"  
Remus cut James off, holding up his hand, "Kingsley explained to Dumbledore that none of Sirius' memories, or even a truth potion would show his innocence. If he was in league with You-Know-Who, he could have figured out a way to alter those memories or prevent the effects of a truth potion. And, he's right. And since Peter—"  
"Yeah what about Peter. Where the hell is he?"  
Frowning, Remus continued, "We don't know. Peter has been missing since a few days before Halloween 1981. No one has seen any trace of him. Some people suspect that he was tortured and is now dead somewhere. I think he's in hiding because he really was the spy. But I can't prove that."  
James rubbed his chin before continuing, "And what about my memories of using Peter as our secret keeper rather than Sirius? Do you think that would be enough to get him out of jail?"  
"I don't know. We would have to talk to the auror department at the ministry. Don't you think you want to get settled at home before bursting into the ministry?" Remus replied.  
"Moony, Sirius has already been sitting in Azkaban for over 2 years. Are we really going to make him sit there any longer?"  
"I suppose not. However, they're closed for the day so maybe we should get you home and wait until the morning," Remus said while looking at his watch.  
James sighed, "I suppose that's true. I just don't know if I'm ready to go back to Potter Manor without—without Lily."  
Remus looked at James, his eyes down cast as he slowly sipped on his beer, "Prongs, you're always welcome to come stay at my flat. I know I don't have much room, or the luxuries that you're used to, but it's a warm bed—couch really—and a toilet. Until you're ready to go back home, anyway."  
James looked into Remus' golden eyes and smiled, "Thanks Moony, that means a lot. I think I'll take you up on that offer for tonight and then see about after that. I just, I want to get everything back to normal, you know?"  
"I can understand that. Why don't we finish up here and head back to my house?"  
"Yeah, that sounds good," James said as he pulled out his wallet, "I have enough muggle money to get this. Think of it as a thank you," James said, preempting Remus' opposition to him paying.  
"I guess I can't really argue with that. Thank you."  
James quickly paid the waitress and then he and Remus stood up and exited the pub before disapparating back to Remus' house.  
Upon arriving, James surveyed the space before him. The flat was sparsely furnished with a couch, small table, and a tv as well as some small kitchen amenities. The walls were bare and slightly worn from time and water damage. The couch itself looked well-worn and frayed. It seemed like the only new thing in Remus' flat were the well-loved books on his coffee table.  
Remus moved into the little kitchenette and put his keys down on the counter before saying, "Well, it's not much, but it's home and you're welcome to it. The couch is all yours and the toilet is just down the hall."  
James simply sprawled out on the couch, putting his arms behind his head. It wasn't more than a few minutes before the long, deep snores escaped James' lips. When Remus, prompted by the sudden noise, looked back over at James he smiled and remembered James' ability to sleep anywhere at any time with little effort. If only it was that easy for him to do.  
Remus turned and walked down the hall to his sparsely decorated bedroom. This was the only room in the flat that had any decoration outside of the necessitated furniture. Along the wall that faces the bed were four framed, moving photographs. The first photo depicted a group of four boys: one tall and lanky with jet black hair; another who was slightly less tall but very handsome and also sporting long black hair; a short, watery-eyed man with mouse brown hair; and finally, a younger Remus. This Remus looked less aged and scarred; his golden-brown hair falling in short ringlets around his smiling face. The Remus in this photo looked happy and at home with his mates.  
The next photo was of a wedding. The man with the jet-black hair from the first photo was wearing a tux and dancing with a redheaded woman who was wearing a white gown. Both were smiling at each other and kissing intermittently. Love enveloped the couple and seemed to radiate between the two.  
The third photo contained four people; the man with the jet-black hair, the redheaded woman, the handsome man from the first photo, and a small, red baby with a tuft of black hair. The two men were standing near the woman while the handsome man was holding the baby up in the air and the tall one laughed. The woman was laying in the hospital bed with her head in her hand and sighing and sometimes laughing.  
The last photo contained only one occupant. A smiling baby with bright green eyes and a large tuft of black hair. The same baby from the picture before it. The baby laughed and gurgled and made little bubbles with his spit, entertaining himself.  
Remus admired these pictures for a moment, taking in what had once been his life, before moving to the bed. Exhaustion had taken over his body as he began to undress and lay down and tried to go to sleep. He tossed and turned for what felt like an eternity before he finally fell asleep.  
James awoke with a start the next morning as the light from the sun began to make its way into the dingy living room. He opened his eyes and looked around, suddenly confused about his surroundings before he remembered where he was and sighed. He threw an arm over his eyes and tried to roll over on the too small couch and when that didn't work, he simply lay there and stared at the ceiling. His mind was racing; his thoughts constantly shifting between Lily, Harry, Sirius and Peter, and Remus.  
The grief that consumed him from the thoughts about Lily was beyond anything he wanted to know or feel, now or ever. The thought of him never being able to see her, to hold or touch her ever again was beyond comprehension. And not something he was ready to deal with. Maybe he would never be ready to deal with it.  
James steered his thoughts to Harry. He wanted Harry home. He was the last piece of Lily he had left; the last piece of what was. Harry is his son and he loved him more than anything in the world, even more than he had loved Lily, and he deserved to be home with his father, to know who he is. James knew that the Dursleys would never tell Harry who he was or where he came from. Those two people are the least magical, least openminded people he had ever met in his life. He had never understood why Lily had kept up communication with her sister after everything with the wedding, after everything their first year, even. Petunia's constant reminders that Lily was nothing like her or their parents had always set James off the edge. He had never understood people's notions that others were different because of what they could or couldn't do or because of where they came from.  
His thoughts moved on to Sirius. How were he and Remus going to get him out of Azkaban? And how did he end up there to begin with? What happened to Peter after everything that night? No one has seen him since, no one has found a body. Could it be that Peter had really been the spy?  
A door down the hall opened and James hear Remus walking down the hall towards the living room. He groaned and sat up, his head spinning as he did so. He still wasn't completely 100% but he was definitely getting there. James looked up just as Remus came into the room looking just as disheveled as James felt. "Morning," James said.  
"Morning to you. I was going to make some breakfast. Did you want some?" Remus asked as he began pulling a pan out of the cupboard.  
James stomach protested, he was feeling a bit queasy, "No thank you. Maybe later. I'm still not feeling quite right since waking up and it's worse in the mornings. I'll get some lunch later."  
Remus shrugged and continued to make some eggs and bacon. He quickly ate and cleaned up before taking a seat next to James.  
"Are we headed to the ministry?" Remus asked.  
James nodded and stood up, "Yeah, I'll see you there?"  
Remus nodded. Both men turned on the spot and disapparated, reappearing at the Ministry of Magic. They had appeared next to the fountain in the atrium and watched as people bustled around the room headed towards lifts and offices. James and Remus walked towards the guest entrance.  
"Visiting?" the ministry worker asked.  
Remus nodded and presented his wand, "Yes. We were hoping to speak to Kingsley in the auror department. Is he in today?"  
The ministry worker took James and Remus' wands and measured them while saying, "I think I saw him go up earlier today. The auror department is on level two. Everything appears to be in order," he said as he handed the wands back along with name badges, "Please be sure to head straight to your destination and then leave upon the completion of your business. Thank you and have a nice day."  
James and Remus nodded and affixed the badges to the fronts of their robes before walking to the lifts at the end of the hall. The both entered and watched as the gates slid closed and the lift began to move. When the lift came to a stop a soft, female voice chimed, "Level Two; Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services."  
The gate slid open and James and Remus stepped off and into the corridor. Both men began walking down the corridor, looking at the doors trying to find the auror office. Finally, about half way down, they found it and entered.  
The room inside was filled with cubicles and offices. People were sitting around at the desks or moving briskly throughout the room. Immediately to their right was a large desk where a wizard sat writing documents and using his wand to file them away upon completion. The wizard looked up at James and Remus and held up a finger as he finished whatever he was working on.  
Once he was finished, the wizard looked up and said, "Good morning, gentlemen, how can I help you today?"  
James spoke before Remus could and said, "We're looking for Kingsley. I wanted to speak to him about the false imprisonment of Sirius Black; I have evidence that will prove he is innocent of all charges against him and he should be released immediately."  
The wizard paled, shock written across his face as he nodded and said, "He's three doors down to your left. I believe he has some time now if you would like to go on in."  
"Thank you," James said as he began to walk that direction. He held his head high, knowing what he was probably going to have to do and he didn't like it.  
Remus and James reached the door the wizard had indicated. The door had "Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt: Deputy Head Auror" emblazoned upon it in golden script. James knocked on the door and opened it once he had heard someone behind it say, "Come in."  
James pushed the door open and walked inside the office, Remus following behind him. Kingsley was sitting behind his desk, his head down as he read over the open file on his desk. James and Remus stood there watching Kinsley, waiting for him to look up. After some time, Kinglsey glanced up, his eyes widening, and looked at the two men before him.  
James put both hands on Kingsley's desk and leaned towards him and stated, "We need to discuss Sirius Black."  
Kingsley looked back down at the file on his desk and sighed before closing it and carefully putting it aside, "I wondered how long it would take for you to show up here. I heard you'd finally recovered. What about Black, Potter?"  
"I have all the evidence you need to release him. You and I both know he didn't do what he's in Azkaban for. I'll give you anything that you need to prove that innocence."  
Sighing, Kingsley leaned back in his chair and touched the tips of his fingers together and held them over his mouth while he thought. Then he said, "Potter, now I understand that this is all hard for you to wrap your head around but Sirius betrayed you. He sold out Peter to You-Know-Who so that he could get your location from Peter. We've got it all worked out. No amount of evidence is going to be able to overcome that presumption. I'm sorry, James."  
James leaned over the desk further, getting as close to Kinglsey as he dared, "Kingsley, you and I both know that's not what happened. Dumbledore knows that's not what happened. I don't want to have to pull rank on your office but I will if need be. Sirius should not be in Azkaban."  
Kingsley avoided eye contact with James as he continued, "I understand that you feel that way, but no evidence you could give us that would show that Black didn't, beyond reasonable doubt, inform You-Know-Who of Peter's involvement with you and then lead him to Peter to gain access to your location. Unless you can provide us with Peter, unfortunately there's no way of knowing what's true and what isn't."  
"Except maybe, you know, the trial he never got?" James asked sarcastically, "There's no way a trial would give any indication as to whether Sirius is guilty or innocent of that crime. And I'm willing to offer evidence that we, Lily and I, had wanted Sirius to be our secret keeper and he was going to be up until the last minute. That's when Peter showed up and Sirius got the idea to use him instead. We didn't even tell Remus that we switched secret keepers to give Peter better protection."  
"Potter, it would take a lot of sway within the ministry to reopen Black's case and get him a trial. I'm not saying he shouldn't or should have had one; I wasn't in charge during that time nor am I now. You would have to discuss that with Scrimgeour and Fudge. They're the only ones who could bring him back in for a trial. If you want to have that conversation with them, by all means, do so. They're both right next door having a meeting regarding Azkaban as we speak."  
James straightened and looked Kingsley in the eye, "It's Lord Potter; Lord James Potter Duke of Roxburghe. You and I both know that I do not and won't use my title for anything less than necessary. Thank you for the information, Kingsley, but we will be getting Sirius a trial and it will occur by the end of the week. Thank you."  
James turned on his heel and left Kingsley's office, Remus following him close behind as they headed down the hall to the next office. James knocked one, brisk knock before entering the room.  
Rufus Scrimgeour and Cornelius Fudge, alarmed by the sudden opening of the door, looked up at James and Remus just as James was closing the door. Then James said, "Well, gentlemen. It seems we have some matters to discuss this morning."  
End Notes:  
Please review and follow Ignoring Destiny! Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter Five: The Evidence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Hi everyone! I know this chapter is super short but it didn't feel right going on with it. I like to end my chapters naturally so you'll find that sometimes I have really long chapters (like chapters 3 and 4) and sometimes I have short chapters (like this one and the second one). But I also spoiled you guys this week with two postings so I hope you're not too mad! Also, I think it's going to work better if I do my regular postings on Thursdays.  
> And a special shout out to those of you who have commented! Your comments remind me that I'm writing for more than just myself. Thank you!  
> I hope you like this chapter! To me, it's very emotional. I am sorry for the cliffhanger again. I can't help myself!

Chapter Five: The Evidence   
"What is the meaning of this unprecedented interruption?" Fudge asked, his voice raising and his face turning a lovely shade of maroon.  
James simply looked at Fudge before turning his attention back to Scrimgeour and stating, "I am Lord James Potter, Duke of Roxburghe and sole heir to the Potter family fortune and lands. I am here today to discuss the illegal imprisonment of Lord Sirius Black, Marques of Lothian and heir to the Black family fortune and lands. He is currently being imprisoned on the false charges selling out my family to Lord Voldemort and being a Death Eater; of which Sirius Black did neither and is neither."  
Fudge, his already red face deepening in color spoke before Scrimgeour could, "That is utterly preposterous. Black has been imprisoned in accordance with our laws and all due course—"  
Scrimgeour interrupted Fudge, completely ignoring the fact that the Minister had even been speaking, "What evidence do you have to prove Sirius Black's innocence?"  
"Anything that you would want. Memories of Lily and I choosing Peter Pettigrew as our secret keeper, sworn testimony from myself of that accord, my memories from that night if need be! Anything you want." James said.  
Scrimgeour stared at James for several minutes before he sighed and folded his arms, "Lord Potter, I'm not sure if that evidence will be enough to release Lord Black from prison. The evidence against him is overwhelming an—"  
"The evidence against Sirius is circumstantial at best! It hardly establishes guilt. Rather, it eludes to a potential of guilt and a jury would have never convicted him," James interrupted.  
Scrimgeour looked at James before continuing, "The evidence against Lord Black is overwhelming and it would take a great deal of counterevidence to overturn his verdict."  
"What 'verdict'? He never received a trial!" Remus barked, his eyes turning dark brown. Scrimgeour paled, this is the first time a shadow of the wolf was seen on Remus' face since he entered the building.  
Scrimgeour loosened the tie around his neck, his face turning redder by the minute, "That may be so, Mr…?"  
"Lupin. Remus Lupin."  
"Very well, Mr. Lupin. But we were under a threat of war and certain policies were in effect that overrode the typical legal system within our magical community."  
"Bullocks!" James shouted, "You put an innocent man in jail and you're attempting to cover it up as we speak!"  
"Now see here, Lord Potter, you cannot speak to the head of the auror department like this! I mean, really!" Fudge shouted back at James, "Sit down and have a proper conversation about this. I'm sure there was a reason that Black didn't receive a trial all those years ago."  
"I will not sit down. I may not be a Minister of Magic but I do still retain my seat on the Wizengamot and I am a Lord among wizards. I would think that I severely outrank you, Minister," James said, his voice cold and deep as his blue eyes bore into the brown ones of Fudge.  
"Mist—Lord Potter, I understand that this is important to you and that you feel wronged by the ministry's decision to find Black guilty. However, there are proper channels to go through in order to obtain a trial for an inmate of Azkaban. We cannot just drag prisoners out willy nilly," Scrimgeour stated.  
"Bullocks to that. I know for a fact that the ministry held a trial for Bartemius Crouch Jr. during the end of the war without going through the proper channels," Remus spat.  
Fudge paled, "Now see here that was a completely different situation—"  
"He was beyond guilty and everyone, even those running the trial, knew it. He had admitted his guilt!" Remus interrupted.  
"Enough!" Scrimgeour yelled, "That's enough, that's enough! Potter, you give me those memories and I will review them personally. If they reflect what you're stating they do, then the auror department will take a review of Black's case and consider giving him a trial. We will leave it to a vote of the Wizengamot, that you will abstain from," Scrimgeour stated his last five words as if they were each their own sentence, "Do I make myself clear?"  
James nodded curtly before taking out his wand. Fudge jumped away from James, his eyes wide, "What do you think you're doing?"  
James, confused, said, "Giving Scrimgeour my memories so that he can review them, like he asked," James made several flasks appear before him as he spoke, "Do you have a problem with that?"  
Fudge physically relaxed and said, "No, no I understand. I'm sorry for insinuating, well, my apologies."  
James quickly extracted the memories and placed them into the flasks one at a time, "Accepted. Please write me once a decision has been made. I do intend to visit him at Azkaban and I do not expect anyone to stop me."  
Scrimgeour simply nodded and then said, "That's your prerogative."  
"On another matter. My son, Harry, has reportedly been living with Muggles. I will be taking him home. Today. I am his parent and it is my right to retain custody of my child. I expect there will be no repercussions to that decision?" James explained.  
Scrimgeour simply nodded his consent, "Now, if that's all I will kindly tell you to get the hell out of my office. You should hear from me within the month regarding these memories."  
James nodded and then turned on his heel and left the office with Remus on his heels.  
~ID~  
Five days later James found himself standing before a white, two story house with a kept lawn and a smooth driveway. The neighborhood that Number 4 Privet Drive was nestled in was quiet and calm; the sun was shining down and the grass was green and lush despite the crisp chill in the air. All seemed well. One car was parked in the driveway and James could see a little tricycle resting on the lawn and the driveway as if it had been left in a hurry.  
James shoved his hands into his pockets before walking up the driveway to the pretty little front stoop. James stood in front of the door for several minutes running through everything in his head. Reminding himself that Harry probably wouldn't remember him, that he had only been a little over one when everything happened and he was now a bit over 3. He was reminding himself that Harry probably felt like Petunia and Vernon were his parents. This is the hardest thing that James had ever done.  
He stood there for another minute before mustering up the courage to knock on the front door. James waited patiently for the door to open. When it did, a woman with blond hair and a long neck opened it while shouting at someone behind her that he could not see. When she turned around her face paled and her eyes grew wide; she brought her hand to her mouth to cover it.  
"Hello, Petunia, I'm here to take Harry home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes:  
> Please like and review Ignoring Destiny! Thank you for reading!


	6. Chapter Six: Harry's Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:   
> SURPRISE! Early publishing! I'm on spring break so I'm super busy and won't have time to do so tomorrow! I'm happy to say that this chapter includes NO CLIFFHANGERS! I promise, I don't want to always leave you with one! Sometimes it just happens. I both enjoyed and didn't enjoy writing this chapter. I really struggled with how I wanted to portray the Dursleys. I know some writers like to emphasize the abuse that Harry probably endured but at the same time he's still a toddler at this point and I would *hope* that Petunia would have held off the majority of the abuse Harry endured until he was 4 or 5. I'm sure I'll bring out that more happened during his time with the Dursleys than I wrote for this chapter but for now this is it. I found it difficult to push through this particular section but after this I'm going to get into the adjustment period for James and Harry and see what's going on with Sirius!  
> I'm hoping that there won't be too many pre-Hogwarts chapters but we'll see where the story takes us, shan't we?  
> To Midnitewanderer: Thank you! Sorry for all of the cliffhangers but I made sure to fix that this chapter for you! I'm sure I will have more, though! James definitely thought about cursing Fudge—hell, I wanted to curse Fudge—but that's why Remus was with him. However, just because James didn't this time certainly doesn't mean that Fudge won't get his comeuppance soon *Ah-Wink* *Cough Cough*.  
> Hinny FTW: Don't worry, James is 100% going to rock that bachelors life for a while. Lily was the love of his life and, to me, she isn't really replaceable.  
> Fast Frank and Dutchie: Thank you both for the positive words!  
> Now that I've forced you to endure my ramblings again, please enjoy chapter six of Ignoring Destiny!

Chapter Six: Harry's Home  
Petunia let her hand fall to her side, anger building in her thin face, "Well it's about time, I should say! He's been here two years already," Petunia turned behind her and called out, "Boy! Come out here! Your father has finally shown up to take you home! Get your things!"  
James' eyes widened. He had prepared himself for any number of outcomes but Petunia willingly and happily giving Harry back, almost forcing James to take him back, was not one he had thought would occur. James watched as Petunia scurried off around the corner in the house looking for, what James can only assume, Harry.  
James stepped into the house taking in the sights around him. He first noticed how immaculate it was, sterile and cold. Glancing around, he noticed all the family portraits on the walls. His eyes scanned for one that depicted the mop of black hair that is Harry. Appalled, James realized that none of the photos contained Harry. In fact, there was no sign anywhere in the house that a fourth person lived there.  
Petunia trotted back into the entry way dragging a skinny toddler behind her by the arm. His hair covering a good portion of his face and his body obscured by an overly sized shirt that more resembled a dress or a smock than anything else. The boy cried out as Petunia yanked him towards James.  
"Well, there you are. Now you can both get out my house. Mind you don't come running back to return him; we won't take him in a second time," Petunia said, crossing her arms.  
James opened and closed his mouth several times before he glared at Petunia, his eyes hard, "So, that's it? You don't even want to say goodbye to the boy you took in for two years? I know you and Lily had your problems, that you never got along, but I never would have dreamed that you would treat an innocent child this way. I should have listened to Lily and made sure you never had a chance to receive custody of Harry."  
"Yes, you should have. I still don't know why I took the little freak in. He's been nothing but trouble from day one. Spoiled and greedy. He's been a terrible influence on my Dudders and I won't tolerate it any longer. I don't even know what Vernon and I would have done if his freakishness had rubbed off on Dudley," Petunia responded.  
"A freak? Did you seriously just call a three-year-old child a freak?" James asked, his voice rising.  
Petunia paled but didn't back down, "Yes I did. You and your son and my freak of a sister, the whole lot of you. Now get out of my house before I call the police!"  
James looked down at Harry who was standing there, staring at him, "Am I to assume that he doesn't have any things, then?"  
Petunia's nostrils flared as she pointed to the door, "Get. Out. Of. My. House."  
James nodded curtly before bending down to pick up the confused Harry. The moment James touched him Harry stiffened and froze, but allowed James to maneuver him into his arms and then out the door. James didn't stop, he kept walking for a while, lost in his thoughts, until he heard sniffling coming from the little boy in his arms.  
James sat down at a nearby bench and looked at the little Harry in his arms who was now silently crying. James sighed and hugged Harry close, stroking his long hair and kissing his head.  
When Harry finished crying he looked up at James, his green eyes bright and alert, and asked, "Who are you?"  
James looked into those green eyes, it was shocking to see them coming from what looks so much like his own face. Finally, after a moment, James smiled and said, "I'm your dad, Harry."  
Harry furrowed his brow, his eyes curious, "No you're not. My dad dead."  
James' eyes hardened as he looked at the small boy, sadness seizing him, "No, Harry, I'm not dead. I'm most certainly alive and I've come to take you home. Unless you'd rather stay with your aunt and uncle?"  
James could feel Harry physically relaxing while his little brain thought, his eyes staring at him, analyzing him, "But Aunt 'Tunia said my mommy and daddy died in a car ac—acc—assident."  
"Petunia told you I died in a car accident?" James asked, appalled.  
Harry nodded, his eyes wide.  
James pulled Harry into a tight hug and felt the boy stiffen in his arms. Letting go, he looked down at the boy and said, "Harry, I don't know how to explain this but you aunt was wrong. I never died; I've just been really sick and couldn't come get you until now. I haven't even gone home yet."  
"Are you sure you're my dad? I don't 'member you," Harry asked skeptically.  
James nodded and then pointed to his hair, "Did you think you just happened to come by that mop of a head of hair? You got it from me. See? We have the same hair."  
Harry reached out and tugged on a lock of James' hair before holding up some of his own and examined it. Then, Harry looked at James, seemingly satisfied, before asking, "Do I have to go back to aunt 'Tunias? I don't want to go back."  
Shaking his head, James said, "If you don't want to go back, you don't have to."  
"Ok, good. Can we go home now? I'm hungry."  
Taking in the boy's skinny frame, James asked, "When's the last time you ate, Harry?"  
Harry shrugged, "Dunno. Aunt 'Tunia said I was a freak and freaks don't get food when they've been bad."  
James simply stared at Harry for a long time while he took in the boy's words. It wasn't until Harry started swinging his legs and back and forth while he sat that James responded, "Well, then, why don't we go get you some food and, maybe, we can go shopping, too. But only if you're up to it. I'd also like to see you get a haircut."  
Harry shrugged and then said, "I don't know what shopping is."  
"What—haven't you ever gone with your aunt and uncle to the grocery store or to the clothes store?"  
"No," Harry said, shaking his head, "I stay with Mrs. Figg."  
Ignoring what Harry said, James asked, "What would you like to eat, Harry?"  
Harry looked at his little belly which let out a loud rumble, "What do you want inside of you, belly?" Harry looked up at James, "Tummy says it would like a sandwich, please. Is that ok?"  
"Anything you want, buddy. Anything you want."  
~ID~  
Later that day James and Harry found themselves walking back into the leaky cauldron. They had spent the entire day shopping in both muggle and magical London for all sorts of necessities for the both of them. Since the cottage at Godric's Hollow had blown up, James had lost the majority, if not all, of his possessions. He had yet to muster up the courage to go back to the little house and look through the wreckage for anything that might have survived.  
James had bought for both of them several weeks-worth of shirts, pants, socks, underwear (James had been surprised to learn that Harry was already completely toilet trained), sweaters, bathing suits, shoes, wellies, coats, and a muggle suit each from muggle London. James had also gotten them necessary toiletries and, for Harry, several toys for his new room as well as a bedding set.  
From Magical London James had purchased for himself several sets of robes in a few different colors including one orange set that he was fairly certain he would never wear but couldn't for the life of him pass up. He had also gotten several sets of black, green, and navy dress robes for himself and a small green set for Harry. James also bought Harry a small, pointed wizards' hat for special occasions. They had also purchased some basic potions ingredients and a female owl that they named Archie at Harry's insistence. And in Flourish and Blots they had purchased several books for young wizards about everything from basic math and reading skills to simple magic control. James had also purchased Harry a small toy broom like the one he had had at Godric's Hollow. Harry was most excited for that toy; the idea of flying excited Harry more than anything else.  
As they stepped into the Leaky Cauldron James scooped Harry up and hurried towards the door, not even acknowledging as Tom the bartender extended his greetings. He did not want Harry to be noticed, that wasn't something Harry needed right now. Just as James reached the door, it burst open and an overlarge man stepped through the door.  
Hagrid nearly ran into James and Harry as he moved towards the bar but he was able to stop himself in time. James' eyes darted around nervously before looking at the man before him. Maybe Hagrid wouldn't recognize him?  
Hagrid looked at James and Harry for a moment before smiling at them and saying, "James! I 'eard ye'd woken up! An' ye got 'Arry with ye. 'Ello, 'Arry, do ye remember me?"  
Harry looked at the overly large Hagrid, his eyes wide as he shook his head and then hid his face in his father's chest. James looked at Hagrid nervously before saying, "Hagrid, it's really nice to see you but we were just on our way out."  
People in the bar had started looking around at the odd exchange; Hagrid hadn't exactly been quiet in his statements.  
Hagrid beamed, "O'course, o'course. Ye should come an' visit me soon, though. Ye know where to find me!"  
James nodded as he scooted around Hagrid, "Definitely. We'll floo out to Hogwarts soon, I promise. It was good to see you, Hagrid."  
General murmuring had broken out in the bar now. Statements like "Is that Harry Potter?" and "It is Harry Potter!" were flying around as James tried to exit the building quickly. Just as people began standing up to move towards them James was able to slip out the door and apparate to Potter Manner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes:  
> Please like and review Ignoring Destiny! Thank you for reading!


	7. Chapter Six: Houses and Letters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Hi everyone! Guess what? Chicken butt! Just Kidding! It's a surprise posting! because my last several chapters have been significantly short I wanted to treat you guys to another chapter! Please enjoy this one as I'm delving into the characters and really establishing them.  
> Miss Elyon: Thank you so much! I've enjoyed writing this so far and I can't wait to hit the Hogwarts years! Keep tuned! Fast Frank: thank you! Midnitewanderer: You're becoming quite the regular! Thank you again for another awesome review!  
> Anyway, enough rambling. Please enjoy!

Chapter Seven: Houses and Letters  
When Harry opened his eyes, he saw the biggest building he had ever seen.  
He looked around the area as his body readjusted from the compressed space, he had just been in. He took in all of the lush, green grass and rolling hilltops that went on for as far as the eye can see. And just behind the building Harry could make out what looked like tall golden hoops surrounded by a thicket of trees. Harry looked up at his dad and then back to the large house before him wondering why they were in the presence of such a beautiful building.  
The house looked as if it were made entirely of rough-cut stone. It was about three stories tall and quite large on the front. It had more windows than Harry could count. Though, considering he could only count to about six or seven, that wasn't overly impressive. The door, however, is what caught Harry's wandering eyes. The door was twice as tall as the man holding him and was made completely out of intricate wrought iron. The iron bent and twisted into ivy, giving the appearance that it had overgrown onto the door; it even had the shape of leaves put into it. Behind the iron was one solid piece of opaque sea glass, worn smooth from its time in the ocean. The light bouncing off of the glass from the sun made it seem as if the iron ivy was alive and moving; although, after seeing the man do magic, it was definitely possible that the iron was actually moving.  
Harry slithered out of James' grasp and landed on his feet in the grass before looking up at the man's face and asking, "Where are we?"  
James looked sadly at the front door of the building and then down at Harry whose green eyes were boring into his, "Homes, Harry."  
"Who's home? Is it your home?"  
"Yes, it's my home. It's your home, too, if you want it to be," James replied.  
Harry looked at James, scrutinizing him with his gaze, "What do you mean?"  
James sighed and knelt down next to Harry, "Harry, remember how I said you wouldn't have to go back to your aunt and uncle's house again unless you wanted to?" Harry nodded, "This is what I meant by that. You don't have to go back because I want you to stay here, with me. I'm your dad, remember?"  
Hesitantly, Harry nodded and then frowned, "I'm sorry. I know I'm not supposed to be asking questions."  
Confused, James asked, "What do you mean, Harry? Of course you can ask questions. Why wouldn't you be allowed to ask questions?"  
"Well," Harry started hesitantly, "Aunt 'Tunia says I'm not to be asking questions."  
James' eyes hardened, "And is your aunt here, Harry?"  
Harry shook his head and then glanced back up at the large house before him, "Can we go inside?"  
"We sure can, bud," James smiled.  
James carefully shifted the boy in his arms and walked over the rolling grass up to the large house and stopped just short of the door. James admired the intricate beauty of the doors to his childhood home before he placed his hand on the handle and pushed. The door didn't budge.  
Furrowing his brow, James attempted to open the door again but was once again met with unyielding resistance. He pulled out his wand and tried unlocking the door magically to no avail. So, he simply knocked on the glass and waited with bated breath before the door creaked open and a small house elf peeked out from behind it scared and confused.  
"Who is knocking on Potter Manner? Who is there? There is no person here," the small elf squeaked before looking up at the tall man before him. When the elf caught sight of James he jumped and squeaked, "Master James! You is coming home! Cirri, Master James is coming home!" He yelled to someone behind him, "Master James you is coming in?"  
"Thank you, Gus," James said as he stepped through the door, "But why was the door locked to me? It wouldn't open when I pushed on it and I couldn't unlock it magically."  
Gus looked at James confusedly, "Master James, you is being ill and we is protecting Potter Manner until we is hearing that you is better. We is not hearing that you is better and so we is not unlocking Potter Manner for anyone, not even Masters Remus, Peter, or Sirius. Is this not what we is to be doing?"  
James visibly relaxed and let Harry slide to the floor before saying, "No. No, that's perfectly acceptable, Gus. I'm glad that you took the safety of Potter Manner so seriously. And I'm glad that you barred Remus, Sirius, and Peter. We will need to discuss that arrangement once I have Harry settled in his room for the evening. We can readjust the security measures in place here, too."  
Gus bowed and beamed at James before saying, "Absolutely Master James. Cirri and I is happy to help in anyway that we can. How is we to be helping Master Harry settle into his room?"  
James handed Gus the purchases that they made earlier that day, "Can you just put these away for me and have Cirri start working on some dinner? I was worried about stopping to eat somewhere with Harry; I didn't want him bombarded by people."  
"Of course, Master James," Gus said wearily, "But I is wondering, is Master Harry ok? He is looking quite green, sir."  
Confused, James looked at the boy in his arms who did indeed look pale and green, "What's wrong, Harry?"  
Harry looked at James, his eyes wide and then back at Gus before whispering, "What is that?"  
James followed Harry's gaze towards Gus and then laughed, of course Harry wouldn't know what a house elf was, "Gus is a house elf, Harry. They're magical creatures that help Wizards in their homes. They help clean and cook and everything. We have two here, Gus and Cirri. They're married and live in the house outside the back of the Manner."  
Harry nodded and said, "So, they're slaves?"  
James paled, "No, they're not slaves. Gus and Cirri are welcome to leave any time they want or take off any time they want to. They choose to live here with us."  
"So they get paid?" Harry asked.  
"Well, no. House elves generally refuse payment for their services. They feel payment is below them. But we treat Gus and Cirri as if they are part of the family. They eat dinner with us, speak to us and us to them as equals, and they have all the rights and amenities that they desire in the house."  
Harry nodded but didn't seem quite satisfied with this answer but he followed James up the marble staircase before them. The entrance hall around them was unquestioningly beautiful. Marble floors and stair case as well as portraits lining every well. The ceiling was several dozen feet tall and the doors leading out of the room were exceptional. Dark, deep purple, made of heart tree. They were dense and sturdy but not overly difficult to move. The stairway had a carpet running down the middle in a deep purple that matched the doors to the home.  
Harry looked up at the second story that was growing before him and saw elegant portraits of people and places he had never seen. And when they moved Harry simply accepted it; he had seen weirder things today when he was at Diagon Alley than he had ever seen in his life and these pictures didn't even compare.  
The second floor was much less luxurious than the first floor had been. The richness was now replaced with softer and warmer furniture that looked so inviting to Harry he wished that they could stop and sit on the wonderful couches. Harry saw a wonderful mixture of both magical and muggle objects scattered throughout the rooms. He saw everything from what looked like a magical game set, which he would later learn was called Gobstones, to a muggle television set and gaming station. Harry looked up to see an owl flying overhead and a saw a beautifully painted ceiling.  
Harry continued walking down the hallway before he stopped and turned back around upon realizing that he couldn't see James anymore. Panicking, Harry looked around the hallway he was standing in but couldn't find a trace of the man who says he's his father. Harry sat down on the ground and waited, his eyes welling up with tears, before he heard hurried footsteps coming his direction. Fearful, Harry crawled under a nearby table and hid, pushed back against the wall. With his heart pounding in his ears, Harry saw feet standing in front of the table he was under before he heard someone calling for him. Then relief swept over him and he carefully crawled out from under the table and looked up at the tall man that was James.  
James frowned at Harry before crouching down and looking him in the eye, "Harry, why were you hiding? I got worried when I couldn't find you."  
Harry looked down at his hands and shrugged.  
James put his fingers under Harry's chin and lifted his face to look into his own, "Did you lose sight of me?"  
Harry nodded at James as tears welled in his eyes again.  
"Did you get scared?" Harry nodded again; this time tears escaped his eyes.  
James engulfed Harry in a large hug, holding him close and stroking his hair. "It's ok, Harry. I'm here. This is a big place and it's easy to get lost. It makes sense that you were scared and lost. I'm sorry that I walked on without you; I thought you were still standing beside me but when I looked back, you weren't there anymore."  
And, for the first time, Harry hugged James back and cried into his shoulder.  
~ID~  
Later that evening James was sitting in the library in his favorite armchair with Cirri and Gus the house elves sitting next to him on the couch. Harry had gone to bed several hours prior to this sit down, but James had wanted some time to himself in his rooms before coming down and handling business. The three of them had been discussing the security measures in place on Potter Manner and how best to reinforce them with the arrival of James and Harry to the estate as well as managing the assets that James had left mostly up to the elves in his absence. James had left a substantial amount of assets to manage to the elves and James was having difficulty remembering all of the pieces. He sometimes forgot how many businesses his family owns.  
James looked over the list once more before he turned to Gus and Cirri and said, "We need to discuss who is and who isn't allowed within Potter Manner. How do I change those wardings? A lot has happened since the war and there are people now that we didn't think were enemies who truly are and I need to account for that."  
Cirri spoke first, "You would be telling us, Master James, and then we is adjusting the wards for you. Who is you wanting to add and take away?"  
"Well, to begin, who is currently allowed in Potter Manner?"  
"Potter Manner is allowing you and any of your descendants, we is not being able to change that, sir. It is also allowing Lily Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, Filius Flitwick, Alastor Moody, Poppy Pomphrey, Alice and Frank Longbottom, Augusta Longbottom, Neville Longbottom, Arthur and Molly Weasley, Pomona Sprout, Horus Slughorn, and Fabian and Gideon Pewit."  
"Ok. Therein lies some problems. We need to take off anyone on that list who is currently dead. So, Fabian and Gideon should be taken off as well as," James hesitated and swallowed before continuing, "Lily. Frank and Alice Longbottom were driven to insanity so I doubt they will be making a house call any time soon. I also want to bar Peter Pettigrew from Potter Manner. He's a no-good traitor and I will not have him set foot into my home in any way, shape, or form. Finally, I think we can be safe to remove Alastor, Pomona, and Horus from th list. They won't have any reason to just drop in and would most likely ask permission before visiting here. Which I would gladly give so don't ban them, just remove them from all access, please."  
Cirri nodded and wrote the names on her list, "I is taking care of this as soon as we is finished, Master James."  
Gus nodded and said, "Yes, we is. And, Master James, Cirri and I is wanting to tell you that we is so sad about Lady Lily's passing. She was a beautiful lady and is always being remembered by us and you and Harry. We is going to put up her portrait in the entry way if that is ok with you, Master James?"  
James looked at the two elves with tears in his eyes before he quickly blinked them away, "Yes, that would be lovely. Lily would have wanted that. Thank you, you two, for helping me with this and everything since I've been out of commission. I promise that things will go back to normal soon."  
The two elves nodded at James before turning and exiting the room, leaving James on his own in the library. James stood up and wandered around for a while, thinking to himself about everything that had happened to him. He paced around the room for what seemed like several hours before he was finally interrupted by a tapping at the library window. James looked up and saw a grey owl standing on the ledge, a letter in its beak. He rushed over and opened the window to let the owl into the house. It flew in and dropped the letter on the table before swooping back out again and flying away.  
James looked down at the letter on the table addressed to him before picking it up and opening it and reading its contents.  
James,  
We have reviewed the evidence you left us here at the ministry several days ago. I have to say that the evidence you presented us with has severely contradicted all evidence that we had received in regard to this case several years ago. Your evidence prompted a further investigation into the matter. I personally withdrew Black's wand from inventory and inspected it for any signs of dark magic or misuse including regenerating the last several spells that Black had personally performed. I saw no signs of dark magic.   
This being said, this evidence does not immediately exonerate Black (though I personally think it should; you can thank Fudge for his adamant refusal to Black's immediate release), however, I have been able to convince the necessary political heads that this evidence is sufficient enough to bring in reasonable doubt as to Black's guilt and convinced them to bring him in for a trial. Black will have the opportunity to put this evidence towards his defense as well as any other evidence that you, he, or any one else may be able to provide.   
We have not told Black about his upcoming trial. I was under the impression that you would want to do that honor with Mr. Lupin. If I am incorrect in my assumption, please let me know.   
Black's trial will be held on Tuesday the 20th of December, 1983, at the Ministry of Magic in Trial Room 3 before the entire Wizengamot and Chief Warlock. I have also convinced Cornelius to forgo the Dementors for this trial. I feel tensions in the room will be high enough that all they will do is exacerbate the situation. Mr. Lupin is, of course, welcome to attend. It is a public trial.   
I am worried that without having direct evidence of Pettigrew's involvement with You-Know-Who that Black will not stand much of a chance of convincing the entire Wizengamot of his innocence. While the evidence is compelling, this particular group of witches and wizards are quite prejudiced against Black. I was unable to convince Fudge that he should have an impartial jury.   
I have Kingsley set aside, unofficially, for your disposal regarding this matter. You, of course, understand that this letter cannot reach Fudge or his underlings in any manner. I wish you all the luck in your endeavor.   
Sincerely,  
Rufus Scrimgeour  
James' heart soared as he reread the letter, almost unwilling to believe this turn of events. Once he'd read it through three times he turned, his eyes darting around the room, before he ran over to the large, stone fireplace in the library. James grabbed a pinch of the floo powder sitting beside the hearth and threw it into the fire and said, "Remus' Flat, London," and then stuck his head into the green flames.  
~ID~  
Remus was sitting on his couch reading the Daily Prophet while he was drinking his evening herbal tea. He had become accustomed to drinking an herbal tea in the evening as he found it to not only be a nice dessert but also a nice way to relax before heading to bed. Most of the time, not always, it helped him relax enough to stay the nightmares that plagued him. It was when he was taking a sip of his tea when his fireplace light up, causing him to spill tea all over himself. No one ever floos his flat.  
Remus sat his tea cup down and moved towards the fireplace to see whose head was sitting in the flames. Remus was socked to see James' messy hair in the green.  
"Remus! Good, you're home. I was worried I wouldn't be able to get ahold of you before it hit the papers tomorrow," James said quickly.  
"James, slow down! Before what hits the papers? What's going on? Is Harry ok?" Remus asked quickly, his heart racing.  
"No, no, Harry is ok. He's sleeping in his room right now. I have the baby monitor charm running. No, Rem, it's Padfoot. They're going to give him a trial! It's next Tuesday! The 20th. Scrimgeour convinced Fudge that the evidence was enough. He was pushing for a complete release but Fudge wouldn't hear of it," James passed the letter to Remus so that he could read it.  
Remus quickly read over the letter, a smile growing on his face, before looking back down at James, "I can't believe this. This is amazing! We have to go tell him."  
"We will. We'll go tomorrow. I'll see if I can find a sitter for Harry. Gods, I don't even know who to ask."  
Remus thought for a minute, running his fingers through his hair, before suggesting, "Well, the Molly and Arthur have quite the brood, I'm sure they wouldn't mind one more. It might do Harry some good to have friends his age."  
James shook his head, "I don't think he's read for that many kids, Moony. Maybe somewhere without any other kids."  
"What about Minerva? The students are on holiday; she might be willing to watch Harry either at your house or at Hogwarts."  
"That's brilliant, Moony. I'll floo her next and see what she has to say. If not, I might be able to ask Augusta. She has her grandson Neville and one kid would probably be fine for Harry. He's just so skittish and unsure of everything. You know?"  
Remus nodded, "Yes, I understand."  
"Ok. Why don't you pop over here tomorrow morning so you can meet Harry before we go see Sirius. I'm sure he would like to meet his Uncle Moony," James said smiling.  
Remus smiled, "Yeah, that sounds great."  
"Tomorrow, then," James said before pulling his head back out of the fire place.  
We're coming, Sirius, James thought.  
Sirius looked up from the floor of his cell; he must have imagined the words. There was no one here besides himself and the dementors outside of his cell. Even knowing this, Sirius wished, he wished that what he heard was real and James was coming. Sirius hung to that hope as he fell into a fitful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes:  
> Thank you for reading! Please like and review Ignoring Destiny!


	8. Chapter Eight: A Trial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS LANGUAGE AND DESCRIPTIONS INVOLVING DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND PANIC ATTACKS. IF YOU FEEL YOU CANNOT OR SHOULD NOT READ THOSE PORTIONS OF THE CHAPTER PLEASE SKIP TO THE FIRST POINT OF VIEW CHANGE.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> TRIGGER WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS LANGUAGE AND DESCRIPTIONS INVOLVING DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND PANIC ATTACKS. IF YOU FEEL YOU CANNOT OR SHOULD NOT READ THOSE PORTIONS OF THE CHAPTER PLEASE SKIP TO THE FIRST POINT OF VIEW CHANGE.  
> Alright guys, buckle your seatbelts because this is one fucking wild ride. First off, LONGEST CHAPTER YET! WOO!  
> I'm sorry this is so late in the evening. We've had some crazy stuff going on here because of the coronavirus *Gasp!*. Yeah; my law school shut down for a WEEK (Yay extra spring break?) and then we're going full online classes for the remainder of the semester. I didn't realize that my class on Tuesday would be my last in person law school class ever. I'm kinda upset about it to be honest with you. But what can you do? So, I've been figuring out that mess which is why this took so long. I also had a conflict with trying to decide how to end the trial...Well, you'll see.  
> Dutchie: Thank you! midnitewanderer: Here's your next chapter! PS no cliffhanger :) smallwjl: I haven't decided if that's what I want to do or not yet so I'm leaving myself the opportunity if that makes sense? And, no, this will not be a Lily resurrection story. She was hit with the killing curse and will not be a character during this fic. I will not, however, rule out memories, portraits, or visits from the dead if I decide to do them. Miss Elyon: His days are definitely numbered! I'm definitely planning to see this story to fluition.  
> Thank you everyone! Please read and review!

Chapter Eight: A Trial  
Sirius Black stared at the rotting, black wall in front of him as he continued to do his daily crunches. He was moving in an unbreakable rhythm; up down, up down, up down. His body tensed every time he moved, the repetition keeping his mind sharp and away from the dementors.  
After two years in Azkaban, Sirius' feet had developed callouses where he put his feet under the bed to hold them down while he did his daily exercises. Caked with dirt and blood, he would put them in the same place every day, keeping to the strict routine that has saved him over the last two years. Wake up, relieve himself. Feet under the bed, 100 crunches. Roll over, hands on the floor, 100 push-ups. Get on his knees, stand up, grab the bar above the middle of the room, 100 pull ups. Lunch; stale bread and water. Stand in the corner and relieve himself. Sleep. Wake up, relieve himself. And so on. His days never changing; always dark, small, and cold.  
Now and then someone new would be brought into the prison. Sometimes he was lucky enough to catch a glimpse, have some small portion of human interaction before the dementors walked by again. If he was really lucky the minister would come, if the person was dangerous enough to warrant such a requirement. Even more rarely, a prisoner would get a visitor. The mood in Azkaban was exceptionally dark on those days as every other prisoner lamented their lack of visitors and the dementors feasted on the excitement of the person having a visitor and the excitement felt by everyone else at the change in monotony.  
Today was one of those lucky days.  
Just as Sirius rolled over to conduct his daily push up regiment, the door to the ward his cell was in banged open and two dementors glided in with a wizard security guard. Sirius stood up and moved to the bars of his cell and looked out at the commotion as best as he could as the 3 people moved down the aisle, drawing closer to his cell. After over two years without a single visitor, Sirius had long stopped hoping, let alone expecting, the company to stop at his cell. Despite this, he was still curious as to who had a visitor. Most people in his ward did not receive visitors because many of them were supporters of Voldemort before his downfall but hadn't done anything severe enough to warrant the heightened security afforded to those like the Lestranges or Crouch.  
While Sirius was contemplating who was the lucky prisoner to receive a visitor, the dementors and guard continued walking down the aisle before stopping at his cell; the guard snapped, "Black! Step back from the door, we're coming in!"  
Sirius jumped back, his heart racing. This didn't mean—did he have visitors? Or was he completely wrong about the guards appearance and this was something much more sinister than he had anticipated? The guard slid his key into the cell door and turned it. The lock clanged as it unlocked and the door swung open and the guard stepped in, the dementors close behind.  
Sirius backed up to the wall of his cell, the cold, wet stone pressing into the palms of his hands. He could feel the sweat dripping down his forehead as his body heated up from the rapid beating of his heart.  
The guard pointed his wand towards Sirius and said, "Come with us, please. You have visitors."  
Sirius stared at the guard for a moment, his mind racing. Then he opened his mouth and tried to speak. It took him a moment before any sound came out. His voice was raspy and cracked, but he could speak. "Visitors?" he croaked.  
"Yes, visitors. A Mr. Remus Lupin and a Mr. James Potter," replied the guard.  
Sirius paled, "James—Remus?"  
"Yes. Now, please come with us."  
Unsure, Sirius stayed pressed against the damp wall for a moment, thinking about everything that was going on. Finally, after a long while, Sirius took a step, and then another, and another towards the guard and dementors. He was hesitant and crouched, unsure of whether this was some joke or if his mind was playing tricks on him again. Finally, Sirius reached the guard who allowed Sirius to pass him before following, his wand pointed steadily at Sirius' back as they walked out of the cell and down the hall.  
As they stepped out of the cell block Sirius' eyes darted around, he was overwhelmed by the new sights and smells that assaulted his senses. It was brighter here; small slits in the wall allowed the light from the sun to peek through the gloom in this area. Sirius did his best to try to get a glimpse of the outside world through these arrow holes while he walked by to no avail. He turned back now and then to take a peek at the guard moving him along the corridor.  
The guard wasn't paying him much mind as they walked; where would he run off to, anyway? There was only one exit and it was at the end of the hall in the direction they were going. What lay beyond, Sirius couldn't remember. Everything from being brought in to Azkaban was a blur to this day; it was confusing and full of anger and fear. Anger at Remus for not coming to his defense. Anger at Dumbledore for just letting him walk out even though Dumbledore knew he was innocent. Anger at himself for not being there for James and Lily. Fear for what was to come. His fear of fear—of the dementors and what they were capable of.  
Sirius was lost in thought as they reached the locked door at the end of the corridor, as the guard unlocked the door and escorted Sirius through it. He continued to be lost in thought until he found himself sitting at a table in an empty and dark room. He glanced around, taking in his surroundings. His was the only table occupying the cramped room. The walls were bare, dark, and dirty but lacked the wetness that his cell contained. There were only two exits in this room. One was the door that he had just come through, the other led to some location unknown to Sirius. It was from the door that they entered.  
"Padfoot!" yelled the man with the messy black hair.  
"Sirius," breathed the man with the golden-brown hair.  
Both men rushed to the table and sat across from Sirius, reaching out to him, their eyes pleading as they took in his appearance. Sirius simply stared at them, his eyes blank, his mind racing and contused.  
James and Remus exchanged a worried glance before looking back at Sirius. They forced him to sit down, his limbs had stopped responding to him as soon as he walked into the room.  
Sirius didn't understand. They hadn't visited him for over two years. Why now? What did they want? Sirius looked from James to Remus, his eyes darting around as his heart rate increased. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest; it felt like it may burst out. It made him need to breathe faster. He began gasping for breath while he sat there, fear gripping his chest as his lungs burned and his eyes watered. Sirius gripped the front of his shirt with his hands willing air to get into his lungs.  
James and Remus jumped up from their chairs and rushed to Sirius' side.  
"Sirius, what's wrong? Are you ok?" James yelled.  
Sirius shook his head as he gasped for breath.  
"James I think he's having a panic attack!" Remus said to James before turning to Sirius, "Sirius, everything is ok. Just breathe normally and calm down. We're not here with any bad news! We just want to explain ourselves and tell you what's going on." Remus began rubbing Sirius' back, trying to get him to calm down.  
Sirius felt the pressure in his chest lessen as he tried to calm his breathing down, tears pouring down his face. James grabbed Sirius' hand and put his other hand on Sirius' shoulder, hoping that would calm his friend down.  
Over the next half an hour James and Remus helped Sirius calm down and, eventually, his breathing evened out and the tightness in his chest dissipated. Finally, they were all able to sit at the table together to talk.  
"Look, Sirius, we don't have much time anymore to discuss everything but we're going to come back again, we promise," James said.  
Sirius looked from Remus to James before croaking, "What's going on? Why are you here?"  
"Sirius, you're getting a trial. James was in a coma for over two years due to the injuries he sustained from Voldemort, but once he woke up we went into the ministry and he was able to turn over all of his memories regarding you, him and Lily, and Peter and the secret keeper change. Scrimgeour wanted to release you immediately but Fudge is refusing to admit he was wrong. So, Scrimgeour was able to get you a trial where we can present this evidence to the Wizengamot and argue your innocence for your immediate release."  
Sirius simply stared at Remus and James, his mouth open, "What do you mean a trial?"  
"You're getting a trial. We can't guarantee that you'll get released after but it's better than nothing," James explained.  
"When is it?" Sirius asked.  
"In three days; Tuesday," Remus responded.  
"Three…three days?!" Sirius said as loudly as his underused vocal cords allowed him to.  
"Yes. We're sorry we couldn't get it sooner."  
"Three days?"  
"That's what we said, Padfoot," replied James.  
"Three days," Sirius said again. Then he jumped up and hugged Remus and James saying, "Thank you," over and over again to the both of them.  
It was during this exchange that the door to the room was opened by the guard again who said, "I'm sorry to interrupt but your time is up. Black needs to get back to his cell. You're welcome to come visit him again tomorrow."  
Remus and James nodded at the guard before turning back to Sirius. Remus said, "We'll be back tomorrow and then every day until your trial. We promise."  
Sirius nodded and hugged his best friends, "Thank you, thank you."  
Remus and James hugged Sirius back before leaving him in the room and the guard entered. The security guard escorted Sirius back to his cell and locked him back in as Sirius looked as far down the block as he could, wishing it was tomorrow already.  
~ID~  
James and Remus apparated back into Hogsmeade village after leaving Sirius at Azkaban. They appeared at the front of the gates to Hogwarts with the sun shining down on them on the brisk December afternoon. It had yet to snow in Hogsmeade but there was a chill in the air and the smell of a storm; winter was here and the snow was coming.  
The two men walked through the gates of Hogwarts and up towards the school. The walk was quiet and empty as most students had gone home for the holidays and those that stayed were in their common rooms enjoying the warmth of the fires and time off from their school work.  
James and Remus walked through the entrance way of Hogwarts castle and up the marble staircase. The walked through the castle until they found the transfiguration wing which housed Professor McGonagall's office. James knocked sharply on her office door and heard someone say, "Come in," before he opened the door and entered the room.  
The sight before James was both comical and heartwarming. Professor McGonagall was sitting in an armchair beside the fireplace in her office which was lit with glowing red and orange flames. In her lap lay a small boy with jet black hair who was deeply asleep. The floor around them was covered in the boy's toys; books, blocks, action figures, Gobstones, and muggle race cars were scattered all around. Two cups of tea, mostly empty, sat on the table in the room and a tin of biscuits, mostly eaten, accompanied the cups.  
"Well, isn't this a sight? It looks like you two had too much fun here," James said, smiling.  
Minerva looked up from the book she was reading and looked at James, a hand on Harry's head, as she spoke, "I hope he had fun. He insisted on playing with every toy you brought him with. He has quite the imagination for a child his age, I should say. And he was exceedingly polite to me and ate his lunch without any complaint. Though, I'm not sure who would complain when they got to have a peanut butter and fluff sandwich for lunch."  
"Well it sounds like you two had quite the day. How long as he been asleep?" Remus asked.  
Minerva looked down at Harry for a moment while she contemplated her answer, "I would say, maybe an hour? He drank his tea and sat with me to read a book and he was asleep in minutes."  
"I suppose it's time to get him home, then. Thank you again for watching him Minerva. You wouldn't be able to watch him again for a few hours over the next three days, would you? We promised Sirius we would visit him each day leading up to his trial. Augusta said she would watch Harry the day of the trial if you wanted to be able to attend," James said.  
"Yes I had hoped to be able to attend Sirius' trial. I've been saying for ages that he couldn't have done what he was charged with. If I know Sirius Black, and I like to think I know him as well as your parents did, James, he would never betray his friends. I sometimes wonder if he should have been a Hufflepuff with loyalty like his. But, yes, I can watch Harry again while you visit Sirius. How was he?"  
The smile on James' face vanished while he recounted their visit to Minerva, "As you can tell, he wasn't great. He's innocent but Azkaban has already taken its toll on Sirius."  
Minerva paled, "It certainly sounds that way. Do you think he stands a chance of being found 'not guilty' without finding Pettigrew?"  
"I hope so," James replied as he began picking up Harry's toys and putting them in the bags they had brought them to Hogwarts in.  
Minerva shifted Harry on her lap so that he was mostly sitting up when James walked over to collect him. James lifted Harry into his arms and thanked Minerva again for her help before stepping into the fireplace and flooing home.  
~ID~  
James and Remus kept their promise to Sirius and had indeed visited him every day leading up to his trial while Harry spent time with Minerva at Hogwarts. He was having a wonderful time exploring the castle with the professor. She had shown him many of the secret passage ways and trick stairs throughout the castle and he had nothing but good things to say about his time with Minerva.  
James and Harry had woken up the morning of Sirius' trial and gotten ready. James had put on the dress robes he had purchased in Diagon Alley and Harry had put on jeans and a sweatshirt. Both had stopped at Augusta's house where James left Harry for the day so he could play with Neville for the day. The boys had seemed to hit it off when Harry first arrived with Neville taking Harry to his room so they could play with a muggle toy called Legos. Legos had become quite popular amongst the wizarding community for children because they were cheap and colorful and the children seemed to like them.  
From the Longbottom Estate James had apparated to the Ministry to take his seat on the Wizengamot for Sirius' trial. The rest of the Wizengamot members trickled in slowly over the next hour while James waited patiently. Augusta's husband, Wilson Longbottom, rushed into the chambers shortly before the meeting was called to order, giving James a smile and a nod as he took the seat next to James.  
James looked across the room to where observers of the trial were seated and caught the eyes of Remus and Minerva who were sitting together in the front row. James gave them a reassuring smile as Dumbledore called the meeting to order.  
"Welcome, welcome to another meeting of the Wizengamot. Today we have been gathered for a special type of meeting. Typically the members of the Magical Law Enforcement Office oversee the trials of the accused witches and wizards of Brittan, but today we have been requested as an impartial jury of the accused's peers.  
"Today we will witness a trial that should have occurred two years ago. However, a trial is better late than never. Today we will witness the evidence presented against and in favor of the innocence or guilt of Lord Sirius Black."  
Among the Wizengamot members were gasps of horror and incredulity upon hearing that today's meeting was for a trial for Sirius Black. There were many mutterings and whispers as people began talking amongst themselves. As the volume level rose, Dumbledore quieted the room so he could continue.  
"Yes, Lord Sirius Black. Though I am sure some of you already have an opinion regarding Lord Black's guilt or innocence, we cannot allow these preconceptions to cloud our judgments of a man who may be innocent! Instead, we must hear the evidence presented and render an appropriate verdict.  
"Now, the dementors will escort Lord Black into the chamber for his trial. Because he is considered a low threat the dementors will not remain in the room with us. They shall stay outside the door incase we need them. Now, we shall begin. Can the accused please enter the chamber?" Dumbledore asked as he concluded his speech.  
The doors to the chamber opened revealing Sirius' emaciated form. He looked so small from so far away James had trouble believing that it was actually Sirius.  
James watched as the dementors escorted Sirius to the center of the chamber and had him sit in the lone chair before exiting again. Dumbledore waived his wand and the chains on the chair began winding themselves around Sirius' wrists, binding him to the seat. Once the chains stopped moving Sirius looked up at Dumbledore.  
"Well now, I think that we're all set, aren't we?" Dumbledore began, "Lord Sirius Black, Marques of Lothian, you had been charged and imprisoned for the offense of being a follower of Lord Voldemort during his reign of terror and for giving out the confidential location of the Potter family which ultimately led to the murder of Lily Potter. How do you plead to those charges?"  
"Not guilty. On all charges."  
Dumbledore nodded, smiling, "What evidence do you have to offer towards your innocence of these crimes?"  
Sirius looked up at James and said, "I have the testimony and memories of my best friend, James Potter. I am also willing to undergo Veritaserum, if necessary, and provide my own memories to show that they correlate with James'."  
"It's a good thing that I brought my pensive along with me today, isn't it?" asked Dumbledore as he pointed his wand toward the other side of the room. From a box against the wall floated out a large, round, stone bowl which gently flew across the room and settled itself on the podium in front of Dumbledore.  
Dumbledore turned to Scrimgeour and asked, "May I have Lord Potter's memories, Rufus? I believe they were left in your possession, were they not?"  
Scrimgeour nodded at Dumbledore before handing him two glass phials full of a silvery liquid. Dumbledore accepted them and tipped the contents of the first phial into the basin and swirled the liquid.  
Dumbledore turned to address the Wizengamot, "I am going to use a series of charms that will allow us to view a projection of the memory from the pensive. I have put the first phial into the basin which is said to contain James Potter's memory of the night he and Lily Potter decided to make Sirius their secret keeper."  
Dumbledore turned back to the basin and conducted several complicated wand movements over the bowl and then in the air. Suddenly, a projection of James, Lily, and Sirius were displayed on the bare wall where the door stood.  
Sirius looked at James and Lily, confusion written on his face, "What do you mean you need to go into hiding? Why would You-Know-Who be after you two? You've only just graduated Hogwarts, you haven't even seen battle yet."  
James and Lily exchanged a meaningful glance before James said, "It's…complicated, Padfoot. But the fact of the matter is that Dumbledore told us that he wants us and Harry dead. And if Voldemort wants us dead, he'll never stop hunting us; the only thing we can do is go into hiding until someone can defeat him."  
"But why does he want you dead? And how exactly are you going to go into hiding?" Sirius asked.   
Lily poured herself a cup of tea from the kettle on the table between them before saying, "Dumbledore and Flitwick have perfected a spell that they believe will make our house completely unplottable except to one person. That person will be the only one who knows where our house is. I mean, I could be standing in my house after the charm was performed but I wouldn't know where I was or that it was my house. and this one person would then have the ability to tell others where we are; and if they don't tell someone they can never find us no matter how hard they look."  
Sirius paled. He shoved a biscuit in his mouth to give himself an excuse to think for a moment, this was an extremely complicated spell that sounded like it would work but there was still a flaw in the plan, "So, only one person would have the ability to tell anyone, including you, where your own house is? So you could just hide in it forever?"  
"Basically, yes. And Lily could perform the charm," James answered.   
Sirius thought for a moment, "Ok, but, if you picked the wrong person, wouldn't you just be handing yourselves over to You-Know-Who on a silver platter? We all know there's a rat amongst us but we don't know who it is. Who would you even pick? Why not one of you?"   
"The occupants, meaning the people to whom the spell is being performed for, cannot be the secret keeper," Lily answered.  
James looked at Lily again before saying, "We were hoping you would be our secret keeper. There isn't anyone else in the world I trust more than you; you're my brother. Always have been, always will be."  
Sirius looked at James, his mouth slightly open. He could feel tears welling at the back of his throat, "I would be honored."  
James clapped his hands as Lily smiled, "Then it's all set! We can perform the charm tonight."  
James and Lily made to stand but Sirius signaled for them to sit down again. He looked at both of them before saying, "I'm honored, James, Lily, I really am. But I think that I'm the too obvious choice. Everyone will know you chose me. I will be the first person You-Know-Who hunts down and tortures for your whereabouts. Isn't there anyone else you could use? Someone less…obvious?"  
James frowned as Lily sat her cup of tea down slowly; they exchanged a worried glance with one another before Lily spoke, "We hadn't really thought about that. I'm not sure if there is anyone else that we would trust with this task as much as we trust you," Lily looked at James, "Maybe Remus?" she looked back at Sirius, "We had opted not to ask Remus because we were worried about his furry problem causing issues with the spell. We were worried that if something happened and he was dealing with that that we wouldn't be able to get help because they wouldn't be able to find us."  
Sirius frowned and rubbed his chin, that made for quite the conundrum, "I can see why that could be a problem," he thought for a moment, "What about Peter?"  
James frowned, confused, "Peter? Sirius, if he were tortured by Voldemort you can bet your sweet ass that he would give our location away in a heartbeat. That man's pain tolerance is smaller than zero. Do you really think he would be the best choice?"  
"I think he makes the perfect choice," Sirius responded, "Who in their right mind would choose someone as weak as Peter to keep a secret this important? We can put him into hiding as well and add an extra layer of protection for you guys. We could put Hagrid and Moody in charge of guarding him. Moody would have the firepower and Hagrid the strength. And I would go into hiding as well; that would make everyone think that you've chosen me and throw them off of Peter's trail, thereby keeping you safe."  
James looked at Lily and said, "It makes a lot of sense, Lils. I say we do it. what do you think?"  
Lily frowned, "I don't know, Jamie. There's been something off about Peter lately. Are we sure that we can trust him? I know he's your friend and all—"  
"He's one of my best friends. I trust him with my life. No. I trust him with you and Harry's lives as well as my own," James looked at Sirius, "We'll use Peter. Can you bring him tonight with you? We'll do it tonight and then you can take him into hiding."   
Sirius nodded as Lily looked at James, concern on her beautiful face.   
The memory froze and ended; Dumbledore turned back to the members of the Wizengamot who had begun to speak amongst themselves again. James could hear statements like, "There's no way that's real!" and "How stupid could they have been?" and "What has the ministry done." From more incredulous members.  
"Silence everyone, silence," Dumbledore called to the assembly, "We still have one more memory to view today. And I believe that we should give Lord Black the opportunity to speak in his defense as well before we render a verdict."  
There was some more general muttering amongst the crowd as Dumbledore turned back around and tipped the second phial into the pensive and conducted the same movements over the basin before saying, "I believe this second memory is of the charm being performed, is it not, Lord Potter?"  
James nodded and said, "Aye, it should be, Sir."  
"Excellent," Dumbledore replied with a smile, his eyes twinkling in the light, as he pointed his wand at the new projection.  
A new memory had formed on the wall. This time it contained four people: Sirius, James, Lily, and Peter all sitting in the cozy living room of the cottage at Godric's Hollow.  
James looked back and forth from Peter and Sirius, a look of concern on his face as Peter held his hands to his mouth, "Please, Pete," James begged, "We need your help with this. Sirius is right; we can't choose him, he's too obvious. You're the least obvious choice and it—the plan makes the most sense."  
Peter shook his head, refusing to meet James' or Sirius' eyes, "I can't, I'm not strong enough or brave enough. What if he comes and finds me? I'll never survive."  
Sirius turned Peter towards him and gripped his shoulders, shaking him a little in the process, "Peter. You were put in Gryffindor for a reason. You are brave and you are strong. You might need some help but we're going to provide that for you. All you need to do is keep the secret, keep them safe. We know you can do that. You're the only person for the job!"   
Peter looked at Lily, his eyes pleading.   
Lily looked away, crossing her arms over her chest before leaving the room. James watched her walk away before looking back at Peter, "Pete, please. We need to do this tonight, before he finds out where we are," he put his hands on Peter's shoulders where Sirius' had previously been, "Will you help us?"  
Peter looked James in the eyes for a few seconds and then slowly nodded, tears filling his small, watery eyes.   
James embraced Peter and then clapped him on the back, "Thank you Peter, thank you! I'll never be able to repay you for this," he said as he raced across the room to the door Lily had exited out of, "Lils, come back! Pete said he'll help us."  
Lily returned a moment later carrying a small baby with a tuft of black hair. The baby was asleep in Lily's arms.  
"What do I need to do?" Peter asked Lily.  
"Stand there while I perform the spell. You know our address?" she asked.  
Peter nodded, "239 Arthur Circle, Godric's Hollow, Scotland."  
"Good," Lily said, "James can you take Harry? I need my arms free to perform the charm."  
James took Harry from Lily, kissing him gently on the head before placing Harry with his head on James' shoulder and James' hand on his bum. James gently rocked back and forth on his feet while Lily twirled and sliced her wand through the air as she recited a complicated incantation. Suddenly, there was a shimmer in the air and James, Lily, and Sirius looked around the room, confused.  
"It must have worked," Sirius said, "I have no idea where I am."  
Lily nodded, "We'll remain this way until Peter tells us the address or he writes it on a piece of parchment for us to read. Peter, where are we?"  
"239 Arthur Circle, Godric's Hollow, Scotland," Peter replied quickly, shocking himself with his own knowledge and immediate response.  
All three people immediately relaxed, a look of recognition on their faces as soon as the words left Peter's mouth.  
"Thank you, Peter. Thank you," James said again, clasping his hand on Peter's shoulder, "You've saved all three of us. We can never repay you."  
"Please, James, you don't owe me anything," Peter said quietly, avoiding eye contact.  
"Yes, we do. And you, Sirius, for giving us this idea."  
"It was no trouble," Sirius said, "But I need to get Pete to Moody so he can set up a perimeter and safety spells around Pete's house until we can find him a hiding location. Let's get going Peter. We'll see you guys soon."  
Lily smiled, "Yes! Sunday for dinner; all three of you, mind. I'm making pasta."  
The memory on the wall faded away as more people spoke this time, many of them raising their voices in outrage. Some people towards the ministry, others towards James and Sirius for showing such, "obviously faked memories." James scowled at this; these people had no idea what a faked memory looked like would be his guess and they wouldn't be able to pick a fake from a true memory in any case.  
"Silence again! You will all have a say when we take our vote shortly. But first," Dumbledore turned towards Sirius who was still seated in the middle of the room, "I believe that Lord Black deserves to speak in his defense regarding these memories."  
Sirius nodded at Dumbledore before speaking, "I just want to say that those memories you saw are exactly how I remember both instances. I have lived every day with the regret of convincing James and Lily to choose Peter over myself as secret keeper. I take full responsibility for that mistake—ultimately it is my fault that Lily died. If I hadn't basically forced them to choose Peter, she would probably still be alive and we wouldn't be here right now. But, at the end of the day, I couldn't have given away James and Lily's location to You-Know-Who because it wasn't my information to give. Even if I led You-Know-Who to Peter's location, I never would have made it past the protection that I told James needed to be set up. Moody and Hagrid had so many protective enchantments and creatures in place that I doubt even You-Know-Who could have gotten passed without exhausting himself or depleting necessary resources.  
"Because I couldn't have told You-Know-Who where James and Lily were hiding and I couldn't have led him to Peter, I can't be guilty of any of the crimes I've been charged.  
"But, also, I don't and never have had a dark mark. I feel like that alone should be sufficient evidence to show that I wasn't, nor am, a death eater."  
Dumbledore turned back to the members of the Wizengamot and asked, "Does any member wish to speak before we vote?"  
James spoke first, "I would, Albus," Dumbledore nodded and then James stood to address the members, "I gave those memories to Scrimgeour after I was released from St. Mungos. What you saw today is a true and accurate representation of what I remember from that day. I do not believe that Sirius Black was capable of giving away our location nor would he have ever been able to lead Voldemort to Peter's location. The only logical explanation here is that Peter is the culprit. If he wasn't, then where is he? No one has seen Peter Pettigrew since the war ended so suddenly two years ago. He's been in hiding because he's afraid of being caught! By which side? I don't know. I'm sure people who followed Voldemort believe that he is the reason for Voldemort's downfall. Whereas if people from our side found him, we would want to know what exactly happened that night, wouldn't we?  
"If Sirius was truly guilty and had led You-Know-Who to Peter, he would have stepped forward to prove Sirius' guilt long ago, if he was still alive. And if he were dead…well, someone would have found his body by now, wouldn't they have?" James sat back down in his seat and looked across the way to where Remus and Minerva were sitting. Both of them gave him reassuring looks and smiles.  
Then Lucius Malfoy stood up. He said, "Dumbledore, I would also like to speak. I would like to speak towards this man's guilt," Dumbledore nodded and Malfoy continued, "We have seen two memories that show that Lord and Lady Potter did decide to choose someone other than Black as their secret keeper, this is true. However, we have seen no actual evidence that Black didn't, in fact, lead the Dark Lord to Peter's house. Black claims that he would have never made it passed the defenses set up but we have seen no proof of this story.  
"Further, Lord Potter has claimed that because we haven't seen Peter since the war ended that he must be in hiding because we would have found a body if he were dead or, if he were alive, he would have come forward to prove Black's guilt. This argument also lacks logic. There have been more than one case where the Dark Lord has killed someone and a body was never discovered. Take Black's own brother, Regulus Black. It is well known that when he backed out of being a death eater, the Dark Lord killed him but Regulus' body was never recovered yet he is still presumed dead. This could be the case with Pettigrew.  
"The evidence presented today is circumstantial and I submit that it is insufficient to prove the innocence of Sirius Black," Malfoy finished and sat back down in his seat.  
James stood back up again and responded to Malfoy's argument, "What Lord Malfoy says is true; the evidence presented today is circumstantial. However, I believe that it's enough to show a reasonable doubt towards Sirius' guilt. I think that it is enough to cause you, the members of the Wizengamot, to question whether he is truly guilty or if he is innocent. And I submit that if you have any question in your mind as to Sirius' innocence or guilt, that you find him innocent. Thank you."  
Dumbledore looked around the room as a general murmur arose again; he simply held his hand up and the room quieted down again so he could speak, "Is there anyone else who wishes to speak today? No? Well, then I believe it is time to put this to a vote. Those that believe Lord Black is innocent of the charge of being a death eater, please raise your wands."  
James thrust his wand in the air before looking around at the other members of the Wizengamot. He saw several people raised their wands and more putting them in the air. Slowly, one by one, about half the members had raised their wands. But was it enough? Sirius needed a majority.  
"And those in favor of guilty?"  
Again, more wands went into the air including Malfoy, Bulstrode, and Parkinson; their wands were raised the highest out of all the members. Again, it looked like it was about half.  
James sat motionless as Dumbledore wrote the numbers down on a piece of parchment before he spoke again, "And those that find Lord Black innocent of the crime of leading Lord Voldemort to Potter Cottage on October 31, 1981?"  
This time more than half of the members raised their wands. To James, it looked like nearly seventy-five percent of the members had raised their wands into the air. His heart sored. Sirius stood a good chance at being found not guilty!  
Dumbledore counted and then spoke again, "And those that find him guilty?"  
Again, several wands went into the air as Dumbledore counted them and recorded the number. Once he was done, Dumbledore looked up at the crowd and then turned back to Sirius. "Lord Black. Today we have witnessed evidence regarding you guilt or innocence of the crimes held against you. We heard your testimony and argument from members of the Wizengamot. We held a vote regarding your guilt or innocence. In order for a vote to succeed, there must be a majority of the members voting one way. Today we have 153 members present with 7 members absent.  
"In the charge of leading Lord Voldemort to Potter Cottage thereby causing the murder of Lily Potter to occur, the Wizengamot has found you innocent with a total of 132 votes for innocent and 21 votes for guilty.  
"In the charge of being a death eater, a follower of Lord Voldemort, 78 people, a majority vote this evening, found you to be innocent. On behalf of the Ministry of Magic, the Wizengamot voids all charges against you, Lord Sirius Black, and hereby expunges your record. You shall be taken back to Azkaban where you will be released forthwith and have your belongings returned to you immediately upon your release."  
James couldn't help but to let out a yell of excitement at these words. He could see Remus and Minerva hugging and crying and Sirius staring ahead, dumfounded by the turn of events, tears pouring down his cheeks.  
Sirius would be coming home. Sirius would be back where he belonged, a free and innocent man. But that begs the question of where is Peter and what happened to him? It seemed to James that this would be their next mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes:  
> Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please follow and Review!


	9. Chapter Nine: Threats and Laughs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:  
> Hi everyone! I know this is a short chapter but I wanted to upload something a little lighthearted considering everything that's been going on in the world. I'm currently home for two weeks while my state is shut down. No work, no internship, no classes...It's so fun guys *Sarcasm*.  
> Smallwjl: I'm going to utilize this time for prep as well! And writing lol. Midnitewanderer: I have some plans for Malfoy so he isn't going anywhere anytime soon. I really struggled with whether to set Sirius free or not. I'm really trying to imagine how these small changes would have affected the HP timeline. But I do think that McG will me a grandmother sub. I'm a big fan of that line of fic as well!  
> Anyway! Look forward to another chapter Thursday (hopefully!) I'm not sure how much of Harry's childhood you'll see. I'm anxious to get into the Hogwarts years!  
> Enjoy!

Chapter 9: Threats and Laughs  
Sirius stood in the entrance way to Azkaban prison as he waited for James or Remus to arrive to take him home. He still couldn't believe that he was found not guilty on all charges; felt like there had been some sort of mistake. It had been an extremely close call. If even one more person had decided to vote the other way, he would still be rotting away in Azkaban with a life sentence.  
The door to Azkaban opened with a bang causing Sirius to jump and look up at the person who had entered the building.  
A man that Sirius didn't recognize sneered at him, his blond hair pulled back out of his face and his body clad in a tight and sleek designer robe. The man looked Sirius up and down before walking purposefully about the room while looking down at his fingertips, an air of superiority about him. "I wouldn't get too comfortable with your excursion into the outside world," the man spoke to the empty air about him but it was obvious who he was speaking to, "As soon as I can find the evidence, you will return here in Pettigrew's place. He is necessary to our plans."  
Sirius' brow furrowed as he watched Lucius roam about the room, "'Your plans'?"  
The man stopped and turned on his heel to face Sirius, looking him in the eye, "Our plans. You're fooling yourself if you think the Dark Lord will never return. And from my understanding, Pettigrew is vital to those plans. I can't have him rotting away in Azkaban, now can I? I will be watching and I will be looking for the flaws, looking for anything that will show you were the spy amongst the Order."  
"Right. You won't find any. You seem to know exactly what happened that evening, though. So, I'll ask you once: who the fuck are you?" Sirius spat at the man as the anger rose in him, his fist clenched.  
The man looked at Sirius, his cold grey eyes taking him in as he contemplated his response, "I think," he began slowly, "that that question is better left unanswered. But rest assured, you will hear of me, and you will meet me again. We run in the same circles, you and I, Lord Sirius Orion Black. You may be from the ancient and noble house of Black, but be sure, my word goes farther within the Ministry than you would want it to."  
Sirius continued to stare at the man, confusion written across his face. Neither man wanted to be the one who broke eye contact; it was an assertion of dominance. Sirius' smoky eyes bore into the quartz eyes until the door to the room burst open again. This time two men ran over the threshold and tackled Sirius, forcing him to break contact with the man before him.  
Sirius hit the ground hard with James and Remus on top of him engulfing him in bear hugs and head ruffles. He could feel the joy and excitement radiating off of the both of them. He struggled to move his head so that he could get his eyes on the man again but he wasn't there any longer. The man had left just as quickly as he had come. But who was he? He pushed these thoughts out of his mind for now and focused instead on his friends before him.  
"I can't thank both you enough for getting me out of here. Thank you!" Sirius said as he hugged both men.  
James pulled back and looked Sirius in the eye, "What was I supposed to do? Let you rot in here for something you didn't do? No way."  
"Yeah, but I didn't expect it to happen so quickly. Or for you guys to visit. I hadn't had any visitors since I've been in this place," Sirius responded.  
Sirius looked at Remus whose head was down, his eyes averted, "What is it, Moony?"  
Remus continued to look away from Sirius as he ran his fingers through his golden-brown hair. Sirius noted that some silver patches had begun appearing there. Sirius thought that made Remus look quite distinguished.  
"You can talk to me, Remus. What's up?" Sirius pressed.  
Remus' hand stopped halfway through running his fingers through his hair again as he let out a deep breath and said, "I just…I'm so ashamed, Padfoot. These last two years…I've let you sit here, by yourself, while I believed—I believed all of the lies the Ministry was feeding the public about you. I'm your friend. I should have just—I should have known you wouldn't do that, that you weren't the spy. I'm so sorry, Sirius."  
Sirius' eyes softened as he heard Remus' words, "Remus, I don't blame you. We purposefully kept the information from you because we felt that the less people who knew the less likely it would be that You-Know-Who would find out. You saw the memories."  
"Yes, I know. But I just—I still should have known. I should have fought harder to get you a trial earlier, I—"  
"Don't. You wouldn't have been able to get me a trial even if you wanted to without either James' memories or finding Peter. Fudge never would have allowed it," Sirius interrupted.  
"Well, Fudge wasn't really the one who authorized your trial in the first place," James replied. Sirius looked at him, confused, so James continued, "I gave the memories to Scrimgeour over Fudge's objections and he reviewed them. Scrimgeour wanted to give you a full release pending a further investigation but Fudge absolutely refused. So, Scrimgeour gave you a trial instead. That's why it was before the Wizengamot rather than the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."  
"Why did Fudge get his knickers in a twist over me? He wasn't the one who put me in Azkaban—he wasn't even Minister when that happened," Sirius said, thinking more out loud than anything. He shook his head and looked back at Remus whose eyes were still downcast, "Remus—no, Remus, look, you're still one of my best friends. I understand why you did what you did. I really do."  
Remus looked up at Sirius who moved towards Remus and engulfed him in a hug. Remus stood stiffly for a moment before relaxing and retuning the hug in full force. They broke apart after a few minutes and looked at each other, understanding the unsaid words that passed between them.  
"Not to break up the love fest here, but I think maybe we should get out of here before the dementors make their rounds, huh? Also, I have to get Harry from Minnie," James said as he rubbed the back of his head with his hand.  
Sirius and Remus nodded at James before Sirius said, "I don't have my wand; how am I going to get anywhere? And, where am I going to stay? I'm homeless." Sirius wiped under his eye, removing a fake tear while looking at James and Remus with big eyes.  
James and Remus exchanged a glance. James sighed, rolled his eyes, smiled, and replied, "You can stay at my house with me and Harry until you can find a house you overdramatic man-child."  
Sirius dropped to his knees and kissed James' hand while repeatedly saying, "Thank you, thank you." James simply rolled his eyes again.  
"Oh come on, are you serious?" James asked before his eyes widened and he waived his hands in front of him in a stopping motion and yelled, "Wait, no! I mean—"  
"Well of course I'm Sirius, and who are you?" Sirius asked, humor dancing in his eyes.  
Both James and Remus let out a groan while Sirius laughed his ass off in front of him. James looked at Remus before both men nodded at each other and held up their wands and disapparated, leaving Sirius in the room alone.  
Sirius gasped and looked around the room before calling out, "Remus? James? Come on guys, this isn't funny!"  
Sirius could hear laughing coming from just outside the door. Sirius pulled it open and found James and Remus bent over with their hands on their knees laughing so hard that no noise was coming out, "Wow, ok. Uncalled for, guys!" Sirius said sarcastically.  
James and Remus looked up at Sirius before busting out laughing again. Sirius just rolled his eyes and waited for them to compose themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Notes:  
> Thanks for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please favorite, follow, and review!


	10. Chapter Ten: Christmas at Potter Manor

Chapter Ten: Christmas at Potter Manor

Everyone in Potter Manor was ecstatic to have Sirius home for the Christmas holidays. James had helped Sirius gather his things from his childhood home, Grimmauld Place. He was staying with the Potters for the time being. 

Sirius’ first night home was spent celebrating amongst the four inhabitants with food and butterbeer for the adults and juice for Harry. They had a good time reminiscing and catching up with each other. 

The next night the four of them set up their Christmas tree and decorated the Manor for the holidays. Remus and Harry baked snickerdoodles for everyone to enjoy and to put out for Father Christmas. Remus learned that night that Harry had a knack for baking. Remus didn’t have to do much outside of reading Harry the recipe in order for Harry to be able to bake his cookies and they turned out soft and delicious. 

Sirius and James had commented on the cookies assuming that Remus had made them. They were all extremely surprised to learn that Harry was the mastermind behind the delicious dessert. Sirius had dubbed him the Baking King, BK for short. 

Christmas morning arrived, rainy and dreary. James was the first person awake in the house. It was still dark as he rolled over to look at his alarm clock. The time read 5:45AM. He groaned and stretched on his bed before rolling and sitting up. 

He ran his hands through his hair and then rubbed his chest before standing up and walking into his bathroom. He took a quick shower and brushed his teeth before taking a moment to look at himself in the mirror, preparing himself for the day. 

James loped down the stairs and was met by Cirri at the bottom. She smiled and said, “Good morning Master James! We is done setting up the presents as you is asking us to do. We is putting the one present in the bathroom. We is keeping Master Harry out of that room when he is waking. What is you wanting for breakfast?”

James smiled and replied, “How about french toast, eggs, and sausage? I know Harry really enjoyed french toast when you made it the other week.”

Cirri beamed, “He is enjoying the french toast! We is going to start that now.”

James nodded and headed into the living room. 

The tree looked spectacular. James had ordered fairies for the tree and he was happy that it hadn’t been a mistake. their soft glow lit up the tinsel and baubles on the tree beautifully. Once he was finished with the fairies he would offer them space on their grounds to live until next Christmas or else make arrangements to send them where they wanted to go. 

James looked up when, a moment later, he heard footsteps on the stairs. Remus emerged from the stairway.

“Morning,” James said, sleepily. 

“Good morning,” Remus said as he headed toward the kitchen. 

Gus must have read Remus’ mind because he showed up with a large, steaming cup of coffee and handed it to a surprised Remus. 

“Oh!” Remus said, “Thank you, Gus.”

“You is welcome, Master Remus!” Gus said, “I is putting extra sugar in it just like you is liking.”

Remus looked at James and held the cup up to toast him before taking a long, deep sip.

“Good bean water?” James asked.

Remus glared at James, “My coffee is delicious, thank you.”

James scoffed and laughed, “Bean water,” he corrected. 

Remus rolled his eyes and continued to drink his coffee as he sat on the couch next to James. They sat like this for about an hour before they heard more footsteps on the stairs. Both men looked up at the noise and saw Harry coming through the entryway rubbing his eyes and holding his blanket from his bed. 

Harry looked around the room and noticed the tree. He blinked and then walked over to sit with James and Remus, putting his head on James’ lap.

“Morning little prongs,” James said as he ran his fingers through Harry’s hair. 

“Morning,” Harry yawned. 

“Aren’t you going to look at what you’ve got waiting under the tree? It looks like Father Christmas came!” James asked.

Harry shook his head, “No. I didn’t get anything. I don’t get Christmas presents. Only Dudley gets presents.”

James furrowed his brow as he looked down at his son, “What do you mean you don’t get presents? I promise there’s something for you under there. Father Christmas wouldn’t forget to bring you anything.”

“Father Christmas doesn’t bring presents to freaks,” Harry replied sleepily. 

James stared open mouthed at his son. He slowly picked Harry up and sat him on his knee before replying, “You are not a freak, Harry. Just because you have magic and you’re different than the Dursleys doesn’t make you a freak. That’s something your Aunt Petunia never learned much to her disadvantage.”

Harry shrugged.

“Well, if you’re so sure, then I suppose we can just get rid of all these presents, then, huh?”

Harry’s eyes grew wide as he glanced at the pile of presents, “Well,” he said slowly as he turned back around to look at James, “Maybe we should just make sure.” 

Harry slid off James’ lap and walked slowly over to the large stack of presents under the tree and began rooting around. James turned again to the stairs as he heard someone stomping down them. Not to his surprise, Sirius walked heavy-footed into the room and looked around. 

“Damn, it’s too early to be awake,” Sirius said as he sat down between James and Remus.

“Sirius, you can’t say ‘damn’. Harry’s here,” Remus chastised. 

Sirius looked over at Harry who was otherwise occupied trying to find his name on the gifts in front of him, “Noted,” he replied. 

Harry turned around with a wrapped present in his hands. 

“What’cha got, little prongs?” James asked, “Did Father Christmas remember you this year?”

Sirius looked at Remus and whispered, “Why would Father Christmas have ever forgotten Harry?”

“It seems the Dursleys didn’t give him gifts because of him being a wizard; prejudice like Petunia had towards Lily,” Remus replied. 

Sirius made an ‘o’ with his mouth as he watched Harry bring the present over to the couch.

“It’s a present and it has my name on it!” Harry said excitedly.

“Well open it, BK!” Sirius said as he nudged his godson, “Maybe it’s a box.”

Harry’s eyes went wide and then he turned his attention back to the package. He carefully peeled off the wrapping paper so he didn’t rip any and then folded it before looking at the gift. It was a book entitled The Tales of Beetle The Bard. 

“What is it?” Harry asked.

Remus took the book from Harry and pointed at the words as he said each of them, “It’s called The Tales of Beetle the Bard, Harry. It’s a wizards fairytale book.” 

Harry took the book back and began flipping through the pages, giggling and smiling at the moving pictures on each page. “Can we read one, Uncle Moony?” 

Remus smiled at Harry and replied, “We can read one later. Right now I think you might have a few more gifts in that pile.”

“Really? More?” Harry asked with wide eyes.

“More,” James replied. 

Harry jumped up and ran to the pile again, much more enthusiastically than he had the first round. Remus leaned forward so he could watch Harry better; Harry had just pulled some more gifts from the pile with his name on them. Sirius had leaned back and closed his eyes on the couch while he listened to Harry’s enthusiastic noises. James had a camera out and was photographing Harry opening presents.

“Wow!” Harry exclaimed as he opened the largest present under the tree, “What is this?” 

James looked out from behind his camera, confusion on his face, “Who bought Harry a broom?”

Sirius opened his eyes and laughed, “I did! He’s your kid, he’s going to love that thing. And since the last one I bought him was destroyed, it’s only right that I replaced it,” Sirius turned to Harry and engulfed him in a large hug, “Merry Christmas, BK.”

“Thanks Uncle Padtoot!” Harry said, smiling. 

Then, to much of the room’s surprise, Harry jumped on the broom and began flying around the room, erupting with giggles every few seconds. 

The broom didn’t fly any higher than three feet off the ground but Harry was quite impressed with it because it moved very quickly. He began weaving around the furniture in the room and circled Gus when he came in to announce breakfast. Gus simply ducked and chuckled at Harry and told him to be careful. 

Harry flew about the room for twenty minutes before James was able to convince him to land. 

“Come on, Harry, I have one last surprise for you,” James said as he led Harry towards the bathroom in the living room.

“You mean there’s more than all the stuff I just got?” Harry asked excitedly.

James chuckled, “Yes, but just one more thing. We don’t want to spoil you too much, do we?”

Harry shook his head as he followed his dad to the bathroom. Once they reached the door, Harry could hear an odd noise coming from inside. It sounded like scratching at the door. Confused, Harry opened the door at James’ urging. 

A small, black pug burst out of the door and began running around the room like a maniac. She was zipping around the furniture and people without breaking stride; doing her zoomies all over the room.

Harry let out a noise of surprise and then began laughing until he fell over and onto the floor. The puppy, noticing that something had changed, flew over to Harry and began licking his face while she crawled over his body. This only made Harry laugh more as he tried his best to hug the squirming dog who continued to move just out of his reach. 

“We have a puppy?” Harry asked between fits of giggles.

“We do have a puppy! I thought a dog would be the perfect addition to our family. What do you think?” James asked Harry.

Sirius walked over and pouted at James, “You’re replacing me prongs?” he put his arm over his eyes and feigned a sob, “Replaced at the ripe old age of 23. How could you!”

James rolled his eyes at Sirius, “Oh come on. You have someone to play with now.” 

Sirius sniffed and then transformed into his furrier form and began to run around with the puppy, knocking over stuff that was sitting on the table. James began shouting and chasing after the two dogs but he wasn’t fast enough. Every now and then Sirius would stop and lean down on his front legs with his but in the air and wag his tail until James got too close; then he would run off again. Harry remained on the floor laughing until Remus came back from the kitchen to investigate their absences. Once he caught sight of the shenanigans he simply laughed and picked Harry up and took him to the kitchen for breakfast, leaving James to catch Sirius and the new puppy. 

After Sirius and James were done running around in the living room they finally went into the kitchen for breakfast. Remus and Harry were almost done eating their french toast, having been in the kitchen for nearly twenty minutes at that point. They each helped themselves to generous portions of the french toast, eggs, and sausages sitting on the table; piling their plates high. 

“Can I play with Coco when I’m done eating?” Harry asked his dad and uncles. 

“Who’s Coco,” James asked between bites. 

“The dog. I named her Coco,” Harry responded as he speared some sausage on his fork.

“That’s a wonderful name, Harry. Where did you come up with it?” Remus asked.

Harry shrugged, “She looks like chocolate.” 

Remus, Sirius, and James burst out laughing at this comment and Harry looked at them with wide eyes. 

Once the laughter died down James said, “You can play with the dog Harry, just stay inside the house. We haven’t added the wards to the outside grounds yet, ok?”

Harry nodded and scooped the last of his eggs into his mouth before rushing off to play with the now sleeping Coco. 

Remus also wandered off having finished his meal saying something about the library. James was sure they would find him there later. 

Just as James and Sirius were finishing their breakfast the fireplace lit up and someone came spinning out of it covered in soot. 

Minerva McGonagall brushed herself off and looked up at the two men standing before her and said, “It seems like it’s time to hire a chimney sweep, James.”

Sirius was the first to his seat, jumping up at soon as he recognized who had come through the fire place and engulfing her with a hug, “McG! It’s so good to see you! Where have you been all my life?”

Minerva blushed and patted Sirius on the back while saying, “Black, I’ve told you a thousand times not to call me McG. It’s highly inappropriate,” she looked over at James who had stood up as well, “I’m here to wish you three and Harry a Merry Christmas. I have a gift for him, if that’s ok with you, James.”

James nodded, “That’s perfectly fine with me. I think he went into the living room; I’ll take you there.” 

James and Sirius walked Minerva to the living room where they could hear the unmistakable sounds of Harry playing with Coco. The noises brought a smile to James’ face. As he opened the door, however, that smile turned into a look of shock at the sight before him. 

In the living room Harry was flying around on his toy broom chasing Coco who was running for dear life and hiding under anything she could find. The tables, the couch, the tv stand, everything. Harry was just giggling and following her. 

“Harry James Potter what do you think you’re doing!” James yelled.

Harry came to an immediate stop, shame written across his face as he turned his broom to look at his dad. He quickly dismounted and hung his head saying, “I was just playing with Coco.” 

“More like terrorizing the poor dog,” James said as he scooped Coco into his arms. Coco was trembling and grumbling as James held her like a baby. 

Harry continued to hang his head and said, “I’m sorry. I thought she was having fun. She was running around.”

“Wouldn’t you run around if someone was chasing you?” James asked.

Harry nodded, “I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”

“You had better not or you’ll get a time out. We don’t act like this in the house. I also don’t think you should be using that broom inside; it’s more of an outside toy than anything.” 

“Ok,” Harry said disappointedly. 

Minerva stepped forward and into the room and said, “Well, I thought that was some fantastic flying. James, he’s a natural! When he starts school, he’ll need to try out for the team. Seeker or chaser I think with his slight build. He’s not quite made to be a keeper or beater.”

Before James could answer Minerva had been engulfed by a hug from Harry who was shouting, “Auntie Minnie, auntie Minnie!” over and over again. Sirius simply grinned at this. 

“I like that, Harry. McG, I’m going to call you Minnie from now on since you won’t let me call you McG anymore,” Sirius said. 

Minerva scowled at Sirius as Harry pulled her over to his pile of presents and began showing her everything he got. He showed off the books of muggle and wizarding fairytales that Remus had gotten him as well as the muggle video game system and games he had received from James and the broom with servicing kit from Sirius. Minerva was impressed with the gifts he had received and seemed most interested in the gaming system. James hooked the system up for them and Minerva and Harry spent a good portion of the afternoon playing Zelda. Minerva was surprisingly good at the game and had started having Harry draw her a map of the world they were in as they discovered it. Harry was surprisingly good at drawing the map and it was very clear what he was trying to depict. The two of them spent several hours playing Zelda together. 

Finally, Minerva set the controller down and turned to Harry, “Harry this has been a lot of fun but I have to get back to Hogwarts for the Christmas feast. I would like to come back and play again sometime, if that’s ok with you?”

Harry nodded, smiling, “Yeah! We need to save Zelda!” 

Minerva smiled, “Good! And before I go,” she held out a small gift to Harry, “I have a gift for you for Christmas.”

Harry accepted the gift and opened it carefully, revealing a wizards chess set, “Thank you Auntie Minnie. What is it?”

“It’s wizards chess, Harry,” she replied, “I can teach you how to play. You’re never too young to learn.”

Harry smiled and hugged Minerva tightly before running off to test the new chess set. This would mean that he used the pieces to play army rather than chess, but Minerva would correct that next time she visited. 

As Minerva headed to the fireplace she passed by Remus who was walking out of the library, “Leaving already Minnie?” he asked.

Minerva frowned and said, “I really wish you three would call me Minerva. It’s one thing for Harry to call me Minnie because he can’t say my name but an entirely different matter for you three.”

Remus shook his head, “Nope. It’s a matter of principal now, Minnie. Sure you don’t want to stay for dinner?”

“No I really can’t. We have the feast, you know,” she replied.

“Ah, well, until next time,” Remus said as he waived goodbye.

Minerva walked to the fireplace and grabbed a pinch of floo powder. Before she threw it into the hearth, she looked back at the empty room and smiled. Then she threw the powder down and went back to Hogwarts.


	11. Chapter Eleven: Prank Wars I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With all of the dark times ahead with quarantining and people being laid off (like myself) I wanted to give you a happier chapter!
> 
> Cross posted on Fanfiction.net

Chapter Eleven: Prank Wars I

It had been several weeks since James had succeeded in getting Sirius released from Azkaban and the small family of four were busy adjusting to their new lives at Potter Manor. 

Remus had kept his little flat in London but had been staying off and on at Potter Manor with Harry, James, and Sirius as he reconnected with his old friends and got to know Harry. In just the few weeks that James had been awake and Sirius home, Remus was looking younger and less shabby than normal. The house elves, Gus and Cirri, were keeping him well fed and his clothes clean and without patches. His smile came easier now and his last transformation was the best he had had in four or five years. Without the threat of Voldemort looming over them, James and Sirius were able to be with Remus when he transformed. They had left Harry with Augusta; he did well sleeping over with Neville, the two got on well. As the next generation of pureblood houses, this was an important development for the two boys. 

Harry had adjusted exquisitely to his new life at Potter Manor. He was reserved at first in seeking attention or expecting anything from his three new parents but as the days moved on and the memories of the Dursleys faded Harry had begun to form a routine. His first Christmas at home had been quite the experience for everyone involved. Because Harry had never received gifts from the Dursleys for holidays, he hadn’t expected anything from his dads. However, he was pleasantly surprised when he received not one gift but about a dozen. He received several from each James, Sirius, and Remus. 

James had fallen back into his roll as a parent without missing a beat. Considering the last thing he remembered before his coma was being a dad this wasn’t at all surprising. 

It was Sirius who was having problems adjusting to his new life. Sirius often joked around and played with Harry and talked with the remaining marauders but James and Remus could tell that something was wrong, that he still wasn’t all there. They suspected that this was the residual effects of having been in Azkaban for over two years. They tried to talk to Sirius, get him to open up but to no avail. 

It wasn’t often that James and Remus found themselves alone in Potter Manor; typically, Sirius or Harry would wander in and then whatever conversation they were having would be put on hold. Today was one of those rare days where Sirius had gone to bed early and Harry was asleep in his room as well while James and Remus were sitting in the living room watching TV.

James looked up at the clock on the wall and saw that it was close to midnight before turning his attention to Remus who was glued to the TV documentary about the Salem Witch Trials. James simply picked up the remote and paused the show. Remus stared at the TV for a few seconds before realizing what James had done. 

Remus turned to James and asked, “What’s up, Prongs?”

“Have you noticed that Padfoot has been a bit…off since he came home from Azkaban? He’s just not himself,” James asked. 

Remus nodded, “Yeah. I mean, he talks to us and he plays with Harry but there’s something not quite right; he isn’t as dramatic as he used to be. You know what I’m getting at?”

“Yeah,” James replied, nodding, “I do. I know it’s going to take time to get him back to his old self, but I’m wondering if there’s anything that we can do to help? Maybe we can get him a mind healer or something?”

“A mind healer would definitely be a good idea,” Remus replied, “But I think there’s something else we could do to help ease the tension around this place.”

“What’s that? You don’t mean…?” James asked, a knowing and mischievous look in his eye. 

Remus’ eyes glinted as he spoke, “I do mean.”

“Well, then! It sounds like we need to get planning. We’ll need the help of Gus and Cirri, a little tricky wand work—” James began.

“And some food,” Remus agreed, a mischievous glint in his eye.

“Rightly so, my friend,” James replied. 

Later that next night James, Harry, and Remus were sitting at the table in the kitchen getting dinner set up while they waited for Sirius to arrive. Gus and Cirri were busy finishing up the last few dishes and rushing them to the table. Harry was putting out the plate settings when Sirius waltzed into the room whistling a tune. 

“Good evening family! What’s on the menu this evening?” Sirius asked as he took a seat at the table and pulled his plate towards himself. 

“Mashed po—pota—potaytows, green beans, and pork chops with apples!” Harry said excitedly, clapping his hands. 

Remus picked up the mashed potatoes and scooped some onto his plate while saying, “And for dessert we have treacle tart!” 

Sirius rubbed his hands together while he looked at the food before him, “This looks delicious!” Sirius reached for the greet beans and scooped some onto his plate and put the bowl down. Then he reached for the potatoes and scooped some up and put them onto his clean plate. 

Sirius put the bowl of potatoes down and did a double take at his plate which was now clean and shining. Sirius scowled and picked the potatoes back up and scooped more onto his plate, giving himself a generous portion and watched in amazement as the potatoes disappeared in an instant. “What’s going on?” Sirius asked as he looked around at everyone else’s plates which were piled high with food. 

“What do you mean?” James asked, looking concerned. 

“My food keeps disappearing!” Sirius exclaimed, pointing at his plate. 

Remus looked at Sirius and furrowed his brow, “What do you mean? You haven’t put any food on your plate.”

“Yes I have!” Sirius said, incredulously. 

“Uncle Sir-rus, you haven’t done anything yet,” Harry said. 

Sirius looked at the food on the table, confused. He picked up the pork chops and put two on his plate while everyone looked at him. He reached over for the sauce of apples and cranberries to put on top of the chops and looked down at his plate which was now empty again.

“Now come on! I had definitely put food on my plate!” Sirius looked around at everyone else’s plates and saw that there was more food on them now. “What’s going on? Prongs? Moony? What did you guys do?” 

James and Remus couldn’t keep the laughter in anymore; they both exploded in laughter towards Sirius who looked at them both with wide eyes, “What did you do?” he asked.

“We,” laugh, “charmed your plate,” James laughed again, “to move your food,” laugh, “to our plates!” 

Remus continued laughing as Sirius looked at them with wide eyes before he bust out laughing, too. 

Once Sirius had calmed down and stopped laughing, he said, “Ok, ok you guys got me good! Now, can we eat?”

Sirius reached out and grabbed the bowl of mashed potatoes again. The moment he touched the bowl it vanished. 

“Oh come on!” Sirius yelled as he reached for the bowl of beans again. This, too, promptly disappeared. He touched the bowl of pork chops and that, too, disappeared. Finally, he reached for the treacle tart and watched in disbelief as the entire pan vanished. And all that was left was the mushy sauce made of apples.

Sirius hated apples. 

He looked at the rest of his family as they were happily eating the dinner that the house elves made, all of them were doing their best not to laugh. Suddenly, the bowl of apples tipped onto Sirius plate and he found himself facing a large dinner plate filled with the apple sauce. 

Wrinkling his nose, Sirius turned to the other three and accused, “You three did this. You know I hate apples! Come on, what’s with the pranking?”

The three of them burst into laughter again at the sad look on Sirius’ face. Somehow, in that moment, Sirius more closely resembled a dog than a human as he was begging for answers and to not have to eat the apples. Then, Sirius began to fake cry and started wiping away the nonexistent tears. 

“Oh, now come on, Padfoot, we’re only messing with you,” James said as he pat Sirius on the back. 

“Yeah,” Harry pipped up, “Gus and Cirri have the food. Look, here they come now!” 

Sirius looked up and sure enough the two house elves were carrying the missing bowls and trays of food. They placed the dishes on the table and replaced Sirius’ plate with a new, non-jinxed one and smiled.

“Is Gus and Cirri doing good, Master James?” Gus asked with a wide smile on his face.

James let out a booming laugh and replied, “Yes, yes you two did wonderful. Thank you for your help!”

Gus bowed towards James and smiled, “If that is being everything, Master James, then Gus and Cirri is going to be eating our dinner now, we is.”

James nodded and then looked over at Sirius who was now staring at James, a hint of mischief in his eye. “You three realize that this means war, right? There’s no way I can let you get away with this,” Sirius warned, “And I will be victorious.” 

Over the next several days none of the people within Potter Manor could move more than ten feet without encountering some sort of prank. They’ve begun dubbing it the Great Prank War of ’84. Even Harry was getting into the pranking by doing small things throughout the house. His pranks were mostly leaving a toy somewhere for someone to step on or hiding an object the adults needed. 

The pranks from James, Remus, and Sirius ranged anywhere from putting shield charms on the toilet bowl so nothing would go in to vanishing their clothes when visitors were over. 

Remus seemed to be at the head of vanishing clothes because poor Minerva had seen Sirius and James naked more often than she had ever wished. The first time it happened she had spit out her tea and turned to cover Harry’s eyes as Sirius stood there naked as he came in this world. Sirius had simply looked down and continued in his nakedness, ignoring the prank entirely. 

“For goodness sakes, would you three grow up already?” Minerva shouted at Remus, Sirius, and James as Remus had yet again vanished James and Sirius’ clothing in front of her. 

James and Sirius looked at each other and then at Remus who stood, fully clothed.

“Don’t look at me!” Remus said, holding his hands up, “I didn’t do it. I don’t even have my wand in my hand.” 

James flicked his wand, causing clothes to appear on himself and Sirius, “You must have because I certainly didn’t,” James said.

“Well I know I didn’t do it,” Sirius said, “If I did, everyone else in this room would be naked. Maybe blue, too, I don’t know.”

Minerva folded her arms when the men looked her direction, “I most certainly did not do this.”

Harry, unable to keep it in any longer, burst out laughing from his place on the floor. He promptly fell over and rolled around as the laughter escaped his lips and the four adults looked at him in bewilderment. 

“Harry James Potter, did you vanish our clothing?” James asked bewildered. 

Harry nodded from his place on the floor.

“You vanished their clothes, intentionally?” Minerva asked, astounded.

Harry shrugged, “Uncle Moony is always doing it, Nana, so I thought it would be funny if I did it and then, poof! They were nakey!” 

Minerva looked at the three men, “Do you see what you’re teaching this boy? Honestly. Childish pranking aside, why is he calling me Nana?”

Sirius grinned, “Well, Minnie, he was having trouble saying ‘Auntie Minnie’ as it’s quite the mouth full, so I told him that Nana was a much easier word to say.”

Fighting a small smile, Minerva said, “Well, I hardly approve. What you three are teaching him is beyond inappropriate. Pranking, unseemly nicknames, I mean honestly, what will he do when he gets to Hogwarts and he’s required to call me Professor McGonagall?”

Sirius shrugged, “I personally think it’s hilarious,” he turned to James, “Don’t you? A mini Marauder!” 

James smiled, “I think that the pranking does Harry good, Minerva, but I agree he really shouldn’t be vanishing clothing. I think we should institute a rule that there won’t be any pranking involving nakedness. Understood, Harry? That goes for you too, Moony, Padfoot.”

Harry, Remus, and Sirius agreed to this rule but as soon as James turned to see Minerva off, each of them gave a sly smile as Harry pulled his hand from behind his toy to reveal his fingers had been crossed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I hope you're all staying healthy and at home during this pandemic! I've personally been going absolutely stir crazy and have not been adjusting well to online classes. My dog, however, has absolutely been loving being a student of the Zoom School Of Law. She has joined in on every class I've had thus far! I hope you all like this next chapter. I'm not going to be doing too many more with Harry being this young. I'll be jumping around his childhood years to important moments and giving a lot of descriptive history until I get to year one.   
> Anyway, on to the story! Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny!

Chapter Twelve: A Little Normality

Harry woke up and blinked several times, getting accustomed to his surroundings after his abrupt reentry to consciousness. 

His room was still dim as the sun was rising and the curtains around his bed were still drawn. He cuddled his stuffed hippogriff closer, trying to drown out the dream that had woken him. He couldn’t remember much as it was quickly fading but he could remember someone throwing him around. The person had been large with a beefy neck that he vaguely recognized as his Uncle Vernon even though he hadn’t seen his uncle in nearly four months at this point. 

Harry threw open the curtains around his bed and slid off, his bare little feet slamming to the cold floor. He quickly padded his way down the hall to the room next door and pushed the door open ajar. 

The soft glow of sunlight spilled into the room from the open window as James snored lightly from his bed where he was cocooned under his blanket. 

Harry quietly crept over to James’ large bed and climbed in beside James and snuggled close, closing his eyes and falling back to sleep. 

James woke abruptly a few hours later when a little foot hit him in the face. He blinked several times, clearing the sleep from his eyes before he untangled himself from his blanket and sat up. James smiled when he saw tiny Harry sleeping, sprawled out sideways on the bed. He simply covered Harry with the blanket and went to get a shower. 

Once he was done, James went back over to his bed to check on Harry. He smiled as he looked at the small boy on his bed. When he caught sight of the green eyes staring back at him his heart skipped a beat. 

“Oh, Harry, you’re awake. You scared me there,” James said.

Harry nodded at James, his eyes wide.

James ran his fingers through his hair and asked, “So why did you end up in my room, bud?”

“I had a bad dream,” Harry replied.

James sat down next to Harry and said, “About what, Harry?”

Harry shrugged, “I don’t remember now.”

“Well I’m glad, then,” James replied, “How about some breakfast?”

“Can we have pancakes?” Harry asked, smiling.

“Let’s see if we can con Cirri into making some for us. Maybe she’ll make her world-famous snickerdoodle pancakes!” James said as he picked Harry up and carried him out of the room. 

“What are snickerdoodle pancakes?” Harry asked.

“Only the best pancakes ever! They taste like snickerdoodles, of course!” James replied. 

After breakfast, Remus took Harry to the Manor library to practice his reading skills so James had a chance to read his mail and get some errands done without worrying about dragging Harry into the middle of a reporter flock. James was hoping to start figuring out what sort of job he wanted now that things had settled down. Really, he didn’t need to get a job; he had enough money to last him several lifetimes, but he needed something to do with his time or he thought he would go crazy. 

James started by sorting through the mail. They had several dozen letters sitting on the table from throughout the week. He had been putting off sorting it because, and to his displeasure his rationale had been correct, more than 90% of it was fan mail for Harry. why on earth people felt sending fan mail to a three-year-old who couldn’t read yet, was beyond him. He pitched those letters almost immediately; they held no value. 

The last few letters were worth keeping. One was from Scrimgeour inquiring whether James was interested in picking his auror training back up. James set that one aside, he hadn’t decided yet. 

James opened the next letter and was shocked at its contents. 

Lord James Potter,

My name is Kalvin Warsh and I am the head recruiter for the quidditch team, Pride of Portree. During your last year at Hogwarts I had observed you playing the position of chaser for the Gryffindor team. At the time I had offered you a reserve spot on our team should that interest you and you declined our invitation due to the war and your recent marriage. 

I hope I gave you enough time to adjust to reentering society after your long hospitalization and bringing your young son home before this letter arrived at your home. Now that the war is over I wanted to renew my offer from several years ago to obtain you as a reserve player for Portree, a position that could start as immediately as you wished. 

I understand that you’ve been out of practice and that you most likely haven’t been on a broom since before the fall of you-know-who however skills like yours never fade. We believe that with training you would be a starting player for our team within the next two years. 

We would be more than happy to offer you a flexible schedule until that time and, once you move to a starting position, the ability to have flexibility for your individual training and practices as well as time off and as many season tickets as you would require for the duration of your career. We would also provide for you a practice broom as well as a competition broom and all equipment necessary for the upkeep (should you choose to do that yourself) or upkeep services for your brooms. We would also provide for you all equipment like gloves, uniform, shoes, etc. necessary and their replacements as necessary. 

We offer a competitive wage of 100,000 galleons per year while on reserve and a bonus of 20,000 galleons upon promotion and an increase of 50,000 galleons per year for as long as you are a starting player. 

I understand that this is a difficult decision. I will keep this offer open for the next month. If you have any questions or would like to accept our position please reach out via owl mail. Thank you for your consideration of flying Portree, we hope to have you as part of our Pride family!

Sincerely,  
Kalvin Warsh

Just as James was finishing rereading the letter Sirius walked into the room and sprawled out on the couch, eating a pear. 

“What’cha reading, Prongs?” Sirius asked between bites.

James stared at the letter and responded, “A letter from the head recruiter for the Pride of Portree quidditch team.”

“What’s he writing you for?” Sirius asked again.

“They want me on the team still,” James replied.

“Right,” Sirius said, “I remember they had mailed you back in 7th year. Didn’t you turn them down?”

James nodded his head, “The war was going on and I had just married Lily—I couldn’t commit to a career like that.” 

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know.”

James sighed and set the letter aside; he would look at it again later and really think about it. At least he had two career options at this point. 

He looked back up at Sirius and asked, “So, are you going to stop being a lazy bum and get a job?”

Sirius shrugged, “I was thinking about finishing my auror training. But maybe I’ll see if I can get a job a Zonko’s; that would be pretty cool.”

“I think either of those options would be really good for you,” James said, shocked that Sirius had actually begun thinking about jobs, “I could see you as being a pretty badass auror, but I would understand if it left a bad taste in your mouth to join the ministry.” 

“Yeah. I mean, I’m not looking forward to having to work for the people who forced me into prison, but I also feel like they kind of owe me for their mistake. Plus, I could take the opportunity to put away the people who really do deserve it while making sure more people like me aren’t wrongfully imprisoned,” Sirius said seriously. 

“I think that’s a very positive outlook, Sirius,” Remus said, surprisingly, from the doorway, “James, Harry wants to know if he can have a snack. It’s nearly 5 though.”

“Yeah, just something small. Or you can have Gus make him something for dinner, doesn’t matter,” James replied before turning to Sirius, “I agree with Remus, on this.”

Sirius shrugged, “I have to talk to Scrimgeour before I can do anything.” 

James began opening the last letter in his pile as he responded, “Why don’t you borrow our owl and mail him?”

Sirius simply shrugged and started flipping through his motorcycle magazine. 

James sighed and looked down at the letter in his hands, there was no point in trying to talk to Sirius once he was done talking about something. He looked down at the letter in his hands and, not recognizing the handwriting, began reading.

Lord Potter,

I’m not sure if you remember me or not from the few times we interacted, but my name is Molly Weasley. I was several years ahead of you in school and did minimal work for the Order during the war. 

I had run into Mr. Remus Lupin in Diagon Alley and we had spoke about how you had brought your son, Harry, home with you to live and you three were still adjusting to your new life together. He mentioned that you had hoped to find Harry some playmates his age but you weren’t sure who had children his age. Remus mentioned that Harry had been visiting with Augusta’s grandson, Neville, and that they got along well. 

I don’t mean to be too forward in offering this but I wanted to let you know that my home is always open to another child in need of a friend. I have seven children myself, five of whom are about Harry’s age. I have the twins, Fred and George, who are 5, my son Ron who’s just turned 4, and my daughter Ginny who’s 2 and a half. Harry would be welcome to come any time he wanted to visit with the children. Really, after 7 what’s one more? 

If would ever like to have a play date, just floo me at the Burrow and we can set something up. And please let me know if there’s anything I can do to help ease you and your family’s transition. We don’t have much but we will offer what we can.

Truly,   
Molly Weasley

James smiled as he got up and walked to the kitchen in an attempt to find Remus. He found Remus and Harry sitting at the bar counter, Harry was eating some nuggets. 

“I didn’t realize you had run into Mrs. Weasley when you went to Diagon Alley last week,” James said to Remus as he handed him the letter to read.

Remus read over the letter quickly while Harry made his dinosaur nuggets attack each other before eating one. 

“Well, I didn’t think she would contact you so quickly. I had mentioned in passing that we were hoping to find Harry some friends his age. She had mentioned that she had some children Harry’s age and I had said that I was sure you would be interested in getting them together. 

“They have a daughter? She must be the first girl born in the Weasley family in several generations! I bet Mr. Weasley dotes on her like crazy,” Remus finished. 

“Oh, I’m sure,” James said before turning to Harry, “Harry, would you like to have a play date with a few kids your age?” 

“Have I met them before?” Harry asked while he nibbled on a nugget.

James shook his head, “Not yet, bud. But they’re nice kids and you’d get to go to their house like you do Neville’s.” 

“I don’t know,” Harry said, “Can I take my toys?”

“All of them?” James asked.

Harry nodded.

“No,” James replied, “you can’t take all of your toys,” Harry’s face fell so James continued, “You could take one or two, though, if you wanted. Something small. No brooms!” 

Harry thought for a moment but seemed to accept that compromise, “When can I go?”

“Let me talk to Mrs. Weasley and see when they’re free, ok?” James replied. 

“Ok, do that now,” Harry said as he turned back to his nuggets.

James frowned, “Harry, that’s not a nice way to say that. Can you please ask in a nicer way?”

Harry sighed, “Can you please ask now?”

“That’s much better. I’ll go floo Mrs. Weasley and talk to her about this, ok?”

Harry nodded and went back to playing with his nuggets as James left the kitchen to go use the fireplace in the library so he wasn’t interrupted during the call.

James picked up a pinch of floo powder and threw it into the fireplace as he knelt down on the floor. He stuck his head into the fire and said, “The Burrow.”

James saw everything spinning around him while his body remained still. It was an odd sensation but it ended quickly as his head settled in a fire place in an unfamiliar kitchen. He could see that it was a very homey house and that someone had begun dinner as a knife magically cut up vegetables on the table and a pan sautéing something on the stove. 

“Hello?” James called to the empty room, “Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, it’s James Potter! Are you home?”

James tried to look to his left as he heard footsteps growing closer. After a few moments a short, pudgy woman hurried into view of the flames. She had bright red hair and deep brown eyes. She knelt down in front of the fire to look James in the eyes.

“Hello, dear!” she said, “What do I owe this call?”

“Good evening, Mrs. Weasley, I hope I’m not interrupting or intruding,” James said, “I just received your letter.”

“Oh, I was worried it wouldn’t arrive! No, you’re not intruding at all. I was just getting the children ready for supper. Have you thought about whether you would like Harry to come over for a play date, then?” Molly asked.

James nodded, “Yes and I’ve talked to Harry about it. He seems pretty excited to meet your children. When would you like to have him over?”

Molly waved a hand at him, “Oh any time, Lord Potter. He’s always welcome in our home. Why don’t you drop him off sometime tomorrow to play?” 

“That sounds great; it’ll give me a chance to get caught up on stuff I need to do. Thank you, Mrs. Weasley. And, please, call me James. I’m not a huge fan of people using my title.”

“Only if you call me Molly,” Molly said, smiling, “Just floo him over whenever you’re ready and then come back and pick him up before bed. I’m sure he’ll get tuckered out quickly.” 

“Ok sounds good. We’ll see you tomorrow,” James pulled his head back out of the fireplace and went back into the kitchen to spend time with Harry. 

~ID~

The next day Harry was bursting with excitement. He had dressed himself, rather haphazardly, and put his shoes on on the wrong feet, and gathered the three toys he wanted to take with him to the Weasleys’. He was both excited and scared to meet more kids his age; he had never had these many friends before now. He hoped that they liked him. 

Harry ran down the stairs and into the kitchen for breakfast where Gus was making omelets on the stove. Harry wrinkled his nose at this but sat down anyway. 

Gus turned around and saw Harry and began spooning something into a bowl, “Master Harry I is making you some oatmeal with cinnamon in it because I is knowing you is not liking the omelets I is making. Oatmeal is making you strong so eat all of it, ok?” 

Gus placed the bowl of oatmeal in front of Harry as well as a glass of chocolate milk. Harry looked up at Gus, confused, and saw Gus wink at him. 

“We is keeping this a secret, Master Harry. You is having a special day so I think you is able to be having chocolate milk today,” Gus explained to Harry who smiled and quickly drank the milk and then began eating the oatmeal.

Harry was pleasantly surprised that he enjoyed the oatmeal more than he thought he would. The greyish color had been off-putting but the mixture was sweet and tasted of cinnamon and sugar. Harry ate the entire bowl and even asked for seconds. Gus had beamed at his request and happily spooned more into the bowl for Harry who then gulped that bowl down. 

Now full, Harry couldn’t wait to go to the Weasleys’ house, but James wasn’t up yet. It was only about 7 in the morning at this point because Harry had awoken so much earlier than the rest of the house. 

Harry wandered around the house until he found the library. He walked in and looked at some of the books lining the shelves before tiptoeing over to the fireplace. 

Harry peered into the container holding the floo powder and then looked around the room. It remained silent and motionless in the early morning air. Harry looked back at the floo powder and put his fingers into it and dug around, reveling in the feeling of the granules between his fingers; it felt so much like sand that Harry was sure that that’s what it was. 

He dug his hands in further, pulling some sand up into his hand and letting it slide back off and into the pot. Harry looked at the fireplace as he dipped his hands back into the container; he had used the floo with his dad a few times, he remembered that you’re supposed to throw it in and then say where you were going. Would his dad really be upset if he, Harry, went to the Weasleys’ a little earlier than expected? His dad might even congratulate him on being such a big boy.

Harry carefully picked up some of the floo powder and scrutinized it as it was pinched between his fingers. Then he looked at the fireplace and threw the powder in and watched as green flames burst into view. Harry walked towards the fire and said, “The Weasleys’,” and began stepping into the fire. 

Suddenly he was yanked away from the fireplace and the green flames were extinguished. He had never heard Sirius enter, and fear gripped his heart when he saw Sirius’ face. 

Sirius’ eyes blazed with anger and fear as he asked, “What on earth were you doing, Harry? That’s not some prank you can pull!” 

Tears welled in Harry’s eyes, “I was going to the Weasleys’. I’m being a big boy!” 

“Harry,” Sirius said as calmly as he could manage, “you never, and I mean never, take the floo by yourself. Do you know what happens if you don’t use the floo exactly right?”

Harry shook his head, the tears spilling out and over his cheeks.

“You could end up somewhere you don’t know, far away, and it’s nearly impossible to track you down after that,” Sirius said sternly. 

“I’m sorry, Uncle Sir-rus,” Harry cried. 

Harry pushed his face into Sirius’ shoulder as Sirius held him, crying. Sirius stiffened, unsure of what to do. The anger he felt was slowly ebbing, but hadn’t completely faded. He worried about what he might do if it didn’t go away. 

Sirius stiffly patted Harry on the back for a moment before finally embracing the boy, putting his hand on Harry’s head and stroking him softly.

“It’s ok, BK. Just, don’t do it again, ok?” Sirius said.

Harry looked up and wiped his eyes, “Are you doing to tell daddy?”

Sirius thought for a moment before answering, “We can keep this our secret, but you owe me. I’ll need your quick fingers for some class A pranks I have planned,” Sirius’ eyes glinted mischievously.

Harry smiled and hugged his godfather before sliding off his lap, “Is dad awake, Uncle padfoot? I want to go to the Weasleys’!” 

“I’m not sure, BK; why don’t you go look?”

Harry grinned and ran off to find his dad who, by Harry’s luck, had just rolled out of bed and come down the stairs. 

James took in Harry’s outfit, which was comprised of a pair of light green trousers, a bright yellow striped sweater, and open toed sandals, before saying, “Well, it looks like someone dressed himself today, huh?”

“Yeah! Do you like it?” Harry asked excitedly.

“I do! I love that you matched that yellow with green. It brings out your eyes,” James said in a funny voice, “But maybe we should change your sandals to sneakers since you’ll be running around at the Weasleys’ today, huh?” 

Harry frowned, tears welling in his eyes again, “But I like my sandals! Please?” 

Sensing a tantrum brewing, James felt it was best to just give in on this one since Harry would most likely be pulling his sandals off to play anyway, “How about you put some socks on under the sandals so your toes don’t get cold and I’ll agree to let you wear them? Good compromise?” 

“I guess so,” Harry replied dejectedly. 

“Why don’t you go grab them while I eat breakfast. Did you eat yet?” James asked.

“Yeah. Gus made me oatmeal!” Harry said as he ran passed James back up the stairs, “It was yummy!”

“Alright then, see you in the kitchen!” James yelled as Harry disappeared out of sight. 

James sighed and wandered into the kitchen and sat at the breakfast table next to Sirius.

“Morning,” James said as he pulled a plate towards him and started loading it up with an omelet, bacon, and hashbrowns.

“Morning,” Sirius replied solemnly. 

James looked up at Sirius as he ate. He carefully chewed and swallowed his bite of eggs before saying, “What’s up? Something happen? Did you find a grey hair this morning?” 

Sirius’ hand immediately shot to his hair where he ran his fingers through the black locks, “No! This head of hair shall forever be black, thank you.”

James simply reached over and plucked a grey hair off of Sirius’ shoulder and held it up to his friend, “Think not, old buddy, old pal. Check again.”

Sirius paled and grabbed the grey hair, internally mourning the loss of color, “What even is life!” 

James laughed, “Seriously, what’s wrong?” 

Sirius gave James a confused look and said, “I am Sirius.”

James simply stared stonily at Sirius. 

“Harry may have done something dangerous this morning that I can’t tell you about because I promised him I wouldn’t. He swears he won’t do it again, though,” Sirius said.

James paled, “What did he do?”

“I made a promise, Prongs; I don’t break those and you know it,” Sirius replied.

“I think I should know what dangerous thing my son did,” James argued.

“Fine,” Sirius said, “But you can’t tell him you know. He already felt bad enough about it once he realized how dangerous it was.”

“Fine,” James said. 

“He tried to floo to the Weasleys’ by himself because he was so excited about his playdate. He thought he was showing us what a big boy he was by doing that,” Sirius blurted out.

James’ eyes bulged, “He did what?”

“Yeah. But once I explained to him about getting lost in the floo, he smartened up.”

“Because that makes me feel so much better about it!” James yelled. 

Sirius shrugged, “But—James I was worried. I was so angry at Harry. I—nothing happened. He calmed down and then went to find you but, what if I had done something? My parents—”

“Were nothing like you and you are nothing like them,” James said, “You would never do what they did to Harry. Ever.”

“But—” Sirius started.

“Never,” James said with an air of finality just as Harry and Remus walked into the kitchen. Harry had put mismatched socks on his feet. They were purple and orange socks—one each for the Holy Head Harpies and the Chudley Cannons. 

“Can we go yet?” Harry whined.

“Soon, little Prongs,” James said as he finished up the last of his eggs.

Harry glanced quickly at Sirius who winked back. Harry smiled and sat next to his dad at the table. 

“Can we go yet?” Harry asked again as he swung his legs back and forth. 

“In a minute, Harry,” James replied, annoyed, “If you keep asking you won’t get to go at all.”

Harry frowned but sat quietly until James had finished the remainder of his hash browns.

James turned to Sirius and Remus and asked, “Do you think 9 is too early?”

Remus shook his head, “Her kids are probably already awake and as excited as Harry. I say take him over now.”

Sirius simply shrugged at James while he chowed down on his omelet. 

“Alright, Harry, do you have your stuff?” James asked.

Harry nodded and held up his little backpack, “I’m bringing Hippo, exploding snap, and my chess set!”

“Those sound like excellent toys to bring,” James said, smiling, “Let’s head to the fireplace so we can floo over.”

Harry frowned but followed his dad to the library. 

James picked Harry up and held him as he threw the floo powder into the fireplace and said their destination. Just like that Harry left Potter Manor in a blur of colors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	13. Chapter Thirteen: Playdates and Interviews

Chapter Thirteen: Playdates and Interviews

Looking around the room, Harry first noticed how warm and inviting the kitchen was. There were constantly objects moving on their own either washing dishes, peeling potatoes, or cooking something. The furniture looked comfortable, like something he could sit in for hours. He could faintly hear children somewhere in the house yelling and laughing. 

Harry tightened his grip on James’ neck and shoulders and whispered in his ear, “Are you sure they’re going to like me?”

James lightly squeezed Harry and responded, “Yes. The Weasleys are a very nice family. I’m sure they’re going to like you.”

Suddenly, Mrs. Weasley came bustling around the corner shouting, “Put those away, Fred! And George, if I see a single Filibuster’s Firework while Harry is here, you won’t be able to sit during dinner!” she turned towards the kitchen and noticed Harry and James for the first time, “Oh! Hello dears, I didn’t realize you had arrived. Welcome!”

“Good morning, Molly,” James said, smiling, “We only just got here so we weren’t waiting too long. I hope it’s ok we came a little early? Harry here was anxious to meet Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George.”

“It’s not a problem! Honestly, what’s one more. When will you pick him up? He’s welcome to stay for dinner,” Mrs. Weasley replied. 

James turned to Harry and asked, “Do you want to stay for dinner?”

Harry stared at him.

“What if we plan on you coming home for dinner and if you decide to stay Mrs. Weasley can floo me and let me know?” 

Harry nodded silently at James then turned his eyes on Mrs. Weasley and shrunk into James. 

“Mom!” a voice shouted from the other room, “Mom, when’s Harry getting here? I’m bored!” 

A little boy with bright red hair wearing a maroon sweater walked into the room as he spoke. The boy had a muffin in his hand and he was silently munching on it as he took in the scene before him. 

Harry shrunk into his dad further while still observing the boy intently, his heart racing. 

The boy turned to his mom and questioned, “Mom, is that Harry?” he turned to Harry, “Are you Harry? I’ve been waiting for you to get here all morning! We’ve got a game of exploding snap going in the living room!” 

James pulled Harry away from him just enough that he could see his son’s face, “Do you want me to stay for a little? Until you feel more ok staying?” 

Harry nodded in response.

“Do you want to go into the living room with,” James turned to Mrs. Weasley, “Which one is this?”

The boy responded before his mother could, “I’m Ron, Ron Weasley! Let’s go!” The boy turned on his heel and ran into the living room before turning around and waiving his arm, “Come on, we don’t have all morning!” 

“Ready?” James asked. Harry nodded in response. 

James walked Harry into the living room and saw a horde of children with red hair sitting around a coffee table playing the aforementioned card game. One of them, a twin, already had smoking eyebrows; he’s clearly lost already. 

As James and Harry entered the room, the five children surrounding the table looked up and inspected the two of them. They must have approved of James and Harry because most looked back down. The small boy, Ron, waived Harry over and indicated a spot next to him where Harry could sit. The small girl, who must be Ginny, stared at Harry and then smiled at Harry just as her cards exploded in her face. This caused Harry to giggle quietly in James’ arms before he looked up at James. 

“Go on, I’ll be right here,” James encouraged. 

Harry carefully slid down and walked tentatively over to Ron before sitting in the spot next to him. Harry looked back at James once to make sure he was still there before taking some snap cards and joining in the game. 

After about ten minutes, James walked back into the kitchen and found Mrs. Weasley. 

“I think I’m going to head out if that’s ok? He seems to be fine playing with the kids right now,” James said.

“Oh yes that’s fine. We’ll floo if we need you for anything,” Mrs. Weasley replied. 

James nodded, “I might not be home but Remus will be there all day. Sirius has some business at the Ministry and I have a few appointments myself.”

“He’ll be fine, James,” Mrs. Weasley assured. 

James nodded and then flooed home. 

Back in the living room, Harry turned to look behind him and noticed that James had left. He began to panic and looked around the room before standing up.

Ron looked over at Harry, “What’s going on?”

Panic rising in his chest, Harry responded, “I can’t find my dad.”

Ron casually looked around the room and shrugged, “Well you didn’t espect him to stay all day, right?”

“Dad?” Harry called, “Dad!” 

Mrs. Weasley came rushing around the corner, her eyes searching until they landed on Harry. She smiled, “Harry, your dad had appointments and meetings he had to get to. He’ll be back later to pick you up, ok?”

Tears welled in Harry’s eyes and spilled over as he began to cry. Harry sat down on the floor and began crying. Mrs. Weasley rushed over and attempted to soothe him by hugging him and patting him but nothing worked; Harry continued to cry. 

“I’ll go floo Remus, ok?” Mrs. Weasley asked Harry in a calm, soothing voice. 

Harry nodded in response as he rubbed his wet eyes and continued to sniff. 

As Mrs. Weasley bustled out of the room Ginny got up from her spot on the floor and toddled over to Harry, concern and hurt in her eyes. She sat down next to him and put her head on his shoulder, her red hair spilling down his back. 

“It o-tay Hayr-wee, I get a-scared when my mummy leaves,” Ginny empathized with Harry, sliding her arm around him in a half hug, “We can play what you want until Reem-shush comes, o-tay?” 

The twins and Ron nodded and walked over to Harry and sat around him.

“Don’t cry, Harry,” Fred said.

“We understand it’s scary,” George added.

“We’ll do whatever you need to make it less scary,” Fred finished.

Harry sniffed and hid his face and said, “What if you don’t like me? I’m a freak!”

Confused, Ron said, “Whattaya mean? We already like you.”

Harry peaked out from behind his hands and saw all the other children nodding in agreement with Ron and smiling. Ginny gave Harry another tight squeeze with her arm. 

Harry pulled his hands away from his face and wiped his eyes, “You—You do?”

All the children nodded and Ginny stood up and pulled Harry with her, “You’re really nice! Wanna go outside and play with the waffle?”

Noticing Harry’s confused look, George said, “She means quaffle. She has a hard time pronouncing some words. Mom says it’s because she’s so little.”

Harry looked at Ginny’s smiling face as she said, “Until your reem-shush is here?” 

Slowly, Harry nodded and the four children smiled as they rushed him out the door and into a field where several strange looking balls sat on the ground, brooms laying haphazardly around. 

Harry’s eyes widened when he saw the brooms, excitement filling him as he ran over to them and picked one up, “I have one of these! It’s smaller. I fly on it!” 

“You have a broom?” Ron asked, his eyes wide. 

Harry nodded as he mounted the broom, “I got it for Christmas from Uncle padfoot! He calls me BK because I’m the baking king he says.”

“Ooo,” Ginny cooed, “You can bake?” 

“Mhm,” Harry replied, “I can make cupcakes!” 

Ginny blushed, “That’s so cool, Harry.”

Harry smiled at Ginny and then looked down at the broom handle, a determined look on his face. 

“Harry, I wouldn’t. That broom might be too big for you,” George cautioned.

“What are you doing,” Fred whispered, “This is going to be hilarious! Don’t stop him!” 

Harry looked at his new friends, a mischievous look on his face, and kicked off from the ground, soaring high on the broom. 

Harry had never been so high off the ground. He began rising; five feet, ten feet, twenty feet; he loved every minute of it. He steered the broom towards Ginny and urged it forward and sped off. He zoomed towards Ginny and turned sharply five feet before getting to her and sped into the air again. Everyone on the ground was in complete shock and awe at Harry’s flying skills. Ginny was beside herself with excitement as she cheered and clapped as Harry flew. 

Eventually, Harry semi-crashed semi-landed back on the ground, ending up on his hands and knees in front of the Weasleys who were whooping and hollering at Harry’s escapade. Harry smiled at them all and knew it would be a good day. 

Back in the house Remus and Mrs. Weasley watched Harry fly with baited breath, both worried and surprised at Harry flying on an adult broom. They watched as Harry landed on his hands and knees but popped up and ran to his friends who immediately began playing with the quaffles, the broom laying abandoned on the ground behind them. 

“I should have known he would be a natural. He’s too much like James. He’s going to be built like James but slimmer, like Lily, I think,” Remus thought out loud more to himself than Mrs. Weasley. 

“He certainly has some skills on a broom. Does he have one at home?” Mrs. Weasley asked.

Remus nodded, “He has a small, toy broom. But it only goes about three feet off the ground. Maybe we should consider buying him a child’s sized racing broom; I’m sure James would get a kick out of playing with him.

Remus walked around the kitchen mumbling, “We would have to place some charms around the pitch for safety. A cushioning charm, a lightweight charm, slow falling, muggle repelling, entry alarms in case he decides to go on the pitch without us…” Remus trailed off. 

Mrs. Weasley watched as Remus mumbled to himself, creating plans and smiled softly. She had known Remus briefly during the war and remembered how closed off Remus had always been to everyone and any idea of a family. It surprised her and made her happy that he’s become part a family without realizing it and that he took to it exceptionally well. He was made to be a father. 

Remus caught sight of Mrs. Weasley again, his eyes grew wide, “I’m so sorry, Molly. I got lost in my own thoughts. It seems like Harry is feeling much better now; I don’t think he needs me anymore. Thank you for flooing me about the situation though. I’ll be around all day if he needs me.” 

“It was no trouble, Remus. He’ll be fine here; you go enjoy your day off,” Mrs. Weasley replied. 

Remus nodded, “See you later, then.” 

Remus picked up some floo powder and headed home. 

Harry spent the day playing with Ron and Ginny; the twins were in and out playing with them, sometimes leaving to go to their room and do other things that Harry couldn’t think of. So far he liked the Weasleys, he thought they were fun and warm. He had the day of his life playing with Ron and Ginny. After his initial breakdown, Harry had grown close with both of them and decided that he would be happy to have them as friends forever. 

It seemed that Ron and Ginny felt the same way. Both of them had taken to Harry quickly. Ginny especially as she clung to Harry while he was there, never leaving his side so she could help make him feel better when Harry started to get anxious or scared. Having Ginny around seemed to help him, though Harry didn’t know or understand why. 

So far, Harry would consider Ginny and Ron two of his best friends in the world and when he left that night after dinner he couldn’t wait to return. 

~ID~

While Harry was enjoying spending time with his new found friends, James was out running necessary errands around London. 

He had stopped at Gringotts to handle the Potter accounts and assets. He was surprised to learn that his assets had increased exponentially since he had gone into hiding during the war. The presidents of his several companies, Sleekeazy’s as an example, had managed to grow the companies and increase revenue and profits to the point that James decide to leave the business ends of the companies to those people. He did notice that the potions company had merged with another and he now owned several other novel potions including some Potioneers researching Lycanthropy and ways to cure it or curb it. His winery had also created a brewery that was doing exceedingly well. Several of his other businesses had expanded in similar ways. 

James went shopping for a few things they needed around the house before finally heading to the first meeting on his list with Kalvin Warsh. 

James apparated to Warsh’s office and took a deep breath before walking into the building. 

Warsh’s office had a quaint little waiting room full of awards and posters of Portree as well as a small receptionists desk with a young looking wizard seated behind it. 

The Wizard looked up at James’ entry and said, “How may I help you?”

James looked around before walking over to the desk and asked more than said, “I have a meeting with Kalvin Warsh at 11?” 

“Name?” the wizard asked.

“James Potter.”

The wizard looked through the book on his desk quickly before saying, “Please take a seat, Lord Potter, Kalvin will be with you momentarily.”

The wizard waived his wand in the air as James turned to take a seat. He looked around at the posters and awards on the walls and tables. James was thoroughly impressed with many of the awards that decorated the office. He didn’t have to wait long before a door down the hall opened and a stout man with blonde hair strode towards him. 

James stood up and held out his hand which Kalvin clasped in his own and shook vigorously, “Welcome, Lord Potter. I see you received my letter. Let’s go back to my office so we can discuss this more in-depth, shall we?” 

James nodded and followed Kalvin back to his private office. The office was liberally decorated with his own personally accommodations and awards as well as posters and jerseys from prior and current members of Portree. If Kalvin hadn’t been the head recruiter for the team, James would have been incredibly awed and impressed with the extensive collection. 

Kalvin walked around his desk and held out his hand to the two chairs in front of the desk as he sat down, “Please, take a seat. Can we get you anything? Water, tea, coffee?”

James took a seat and shook his head, “No, thank you. I’m hoping to make this quick, I have some other meetings I need to attend to.”

“Absolutely. What can we do for you today?” Kalvin asked, leaning back in his chair. 

James crossed his ankle over his thigh and began, “I received your letter and I’ve been weighing my options. I have an offer to return to my auror training at full pay with the understanding that I would be expedited through. I’m not sure I really want to live a life of catching criminals when I know that the war isn’t completely over.

“Your offer is tempting, it really is. But I need more information regarding the position. A time line as well as hours etc. since I’ve recently become a single parent. I have help at home, obviously, but Sirius is looking for work and Remus gets ill often.”

“Of course,” Kalvin began, “When you would be on the reserve team, your team trainings would take place Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays on Pitch 3 from 7 A.M. to 3 P.M. with a half hour lunch. You would also be required to do individual work outs 4 days a week at any time you schedule with one of our personal trainers. 

“After you moved to a starting position your trainings would increase. You would have to schedule individual trainings with one of the coaches 3 days a week as well as your individual work outs 4 days a week. Team trainings would then be Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. with a half hour lunch and two half hour stretching sessions. 

“You would be welcome to bring your son to practices and place him in the team daycare facility when necessary or all the time. We offer basic education for children who are four and older until they reach Hogwarts age. You would be welcome to join him during your lunch time; many of our parents take advantage of that option.

“Did I address all of your concerns?”

James thought for a minute, running his fingers through his hair, “I think it does. When do you need a decision by?”

Kalvin sat up in his chair, “Well, we would like an answer as soon as possible as the season began two weeks ago. We’ve held this position open for you but we will eventually have to fill it.”

“I understand,” James replied, “Can I owl you tonight with a decision?”

“Of course. I’ll await your response,” Kalvin said, smiling.

James stood up and shook Kalvin’s hand again before turning on his heel and exiting the office. Once he left, James apparated to the Ministry where he waited in the atrium for Sirius to arrive. 

Hearing his name, James looked up to see Sirius walking towards him wearing one of James’ sets of dress robes. 

“Mate, why are you wearing my clothes?” James asked Sirius once he had walked closer. 

“Because I wanted to look as sexy as you,” Sirius replied, batting his eyes. 

“Come off it,” James said, rolling his eyes, “They’re my clothes. Wear your own; you have a ton!”

“No dress robes. Those are all at my parent’s house. I’m not going back there,” Sirius said sternly. 

James rolled his eyes, “Fine. But after this you need to go to Madam Malkin’s and buy your own robes!”

Sirius shrugged, “If you say so. Let’s get this over with.”

“You’re the one that wanted to come today,” James said. 

“It’s time I get a job; that doesn’t mean I have to like being here,” Sirius spat.

“That’s true. But are you sure you really want to have to come here every day for the rest of your life?” James aske.

Sirius let out a breath, “It wasn’t Scrimgeour or Fudge’s fault that I didn’t get a trial right away. It was the bastard, Crouch, and Fudge’s predecessor. As much as I want to hold a grudge…I just can’t.”

James nodded and didn’t pry any further. 

The two men entered the lift before them and rode it to the auror floor. They stepped off the lift and headed down the hallway towards the auror department and walked through the door. 

The receptionist looked up at the pair and asked, “How can I help you today, gentlemen?” 

“We’re here to see Scrimgeour. We have an appointment,” Sirius replied curtly. 

The receptionist nodded and waived her wand, “He’ll be out in a moment.”

Sirius nodded and turned back towards James and waited. James, who continued to look at the receptionist, noticed her giving Sirius a nasty look as she went back to her paperwork. 

“Do you have a problem?” James asked the receptionist. 

Confused, the receptionist replied, “I’m sorry?”

“I asked, ‘do you have a problem?’” James repeated. 

“With what?” 

“My friend, here,” James replied, indicating Sirius. 

“What would give you that idea?” the receptionist asked. 

Sirius could see Scrimgeour walking down the hall towards them and tapped James on his shoulder just as he replied, “The nasty look you gave him once he turned away from you gave me a pretty good indication.”

The receptionist scowled and replied, “Well, he’s Sirius Black, isn’t he? He was a death eater,” the last sentence came out as a whisper intended for James. 

“I was found not guilty,” Sirius barked, “But I do take note that you recognized my handsome good look.” 

Scrimgeour walked up to James and Sirius and growled, “Is there a problem here?”

Scowling, James responded, “Your receptionist is severely misinformed about the comings and goings of the Ministry’s court system. I find that rather concerning given the fact that she works in the auror department.” 

Scrimgeour looked blankly at the receptionist before turning back to James, “We’ll deal with this issue. Shall we head back to my office and discuss employment?” 

“Yes,” Sirius replied curtly. 

James snuck a peek back at the receptionist who now had a white face, her eyes wide and scared. James simply smirked and followed Sirius and Scrimgeour back to the office. 

Scrimgeour turned to the two men, “I’ll speak to each of you separately if that’s ok with you.”

James shrugged and indicated with his hands that Sirius was welcome to go first. Sirius nodded, sighed, and followed Scrimgeour into the office. James took a seat outside the door and waited. 

“Lord Black,” Scrimgeour began, “I must say I was surprised to receive your letter regarding reentry into the auror program.”

“Yeah, well, I want to get back into a routine. Get a job, be responsible and all that,” Sirius replied. 

“For the Ministry? Even though the Ministry is who put you in Azkaban?” 

Sirius nodded, “It wasn’t your fault or Fudge’s fault; even though he fought my immediate release. It was Crouch’s fault and from my understanding he is now in the Department of International Cooperation, correct?” 

“Yes. Crouch was moved shortly after the last Minister retired,” Scrimgeour replied, “I’ve been reviewing your file and where you left off with training. It looks like you had almost completed everything. You finished boot camp, the classes, and training; you just needed to complete your examination. Is that correct?”

“Yes, sir. I was scheduled to take it about two weeks after Voldemort fell,” Sirius responded.

Scrimgeour shuddered at Voldemort’s name, “Please don’t say his name in this office. We may handle dark wizards, but many of us still do not like to hear the name.”

Sirius simply nodded in response. 

Scrimgeour looked at Sirius as if expecting a response before looking back down at the documents, “Well, it looks like you exceeded expectations in all classes and in bootcamp. You did exceptionally well in your dueling classes. I don’t think you would need to repeat any of this stuff. I just want you to take the exam and pass. If you can do that, you’ll have a position as an A1 in the office, our lowest auror position. After that we can discuss how you could get promoted if that’s what you want.

“That is, if you want to take the exam and become an auror?”

Sirius let out a deep breath, “What would I be doing if I received the position and passed the exam? Am I going to be continuously met with confrontations like I had with your receptionist?”

“Absolutely not. She’s going to be dealt with immediately upon you and Lord Potter leaving the office. We do not tolerate hate and ignorance in our office,” Scrimgeour assured Sirius in his gruff and deep voice. 

“I’ve done a lot of thinking about this. I’ve always wanted to be an auror. But I don’t think I want to do it full time. I have commitments with the Wizengamot and I want to be able to work on my motorcycles. And, honestly, I don’t need the money. Is that something I can do?” Sirius asked.

Scrimgeour leaned back in his chair, “To be honest, you’ll never advance in this department while working full time. If you want to be in a higher position, you would need to work fulltime until you receive those promotions and then move to part time.” 

“How long would it take for me to be promoted? I don’t want your job or King’s job, but A supervisory position would be nice,” Sirius asked.

Scrimgeour thought for a moment before replying, “Maybe three or four years if you put in the work.”

“While working fulltime, can I still have the ability to attend the Wizengamot meetings?” 

“Yes, we would make sure that happens.”

Sirius thought for a moment, “When can I take the test?” 

“We can have it set up for a week from today,” Scrimgeour replied, “Does this mean you want the job?” 

Sirius sighed, “Yeah, I’ll take the job.” 

“Excellent,” Scrimgeour replied as he stood up and held out his hand. Sirius clasped it and shook briefly before standing himself and turning towards the door. 

“Send in Potter, would you?” Scrimgeour requested. 

“Sure thing,” Sirius replied. 

Sirius exited the room and looked up the hall and back before he noticed James sitting next to him.

“How’d it go?” James asked.

“Ok. I have to take the exam and then I have the job—assuming I pass that is,” Sirius replied, “He wants you in there, now. What are you going to do? Do you know?”

“Yeah, I know. It should be a short meeting,” James replied.

James stood up and walked into the door, closing it behind him.


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Tick, Tick, Ticking Timebomb

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DESCRIPTIONS AND SCENES INVOLVING MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES INCLUDING ANXIETY, PTSD, AND PANIC.
> 
> Hi everyone! I hope you're all staying safe, healthy, and home! We've been staying pretty safe here at my house. Everything is still getting postponed but I did qualify for unemployment. Yay income! My commencement ceremony was postponed until December though :(. I've also seen a significant increase in my alcohol consumption. I'm almost out of wine!
> 
> I hope you all love this chapter as much as I do and remember; stay home and WASH YOUR FUCKING HANDS! <3

Chapter Fourteen: Tick, Tick, Ticking Time Bomb

It’s the right thing to do, Sirius thought to himself, I need a job. I need normality.

Sirius wringed his hands together as he sat outside of Scrimgeour’s door, his eyes darting around at all the people in the office. He noticed the people looking at him; saw the looks the exchanged with one another. He could hear the hushed whispers behind their hands and pieces of parchment. The ticking of some incessant object to his left; tick, tick, tick. 

More people gathered in the open area at the mouth of the hall and stared in now, ogling him. Sirius pretended not to notice by allowing his eyes to wander but that did nothing for his mind which couldn’t stop noticing the goddamned ticking noise. 

Is that getting louder? Sirius thought as he heard the chimes again; tick, tick, tick, tick, tick. 

Sirius shook his head and peeked down the hall. But down the hall wasn’t down the hall anymore. Down the hall was, maybe, two steps away now and all those people were so close he could smell their cold, stinking breath. Tick, tick, tick, rattle! 

What was that! Sirius yelled in his head, sweat dripping down the back of his neck as he heard a rattling breath. He whipped his head around at the crowd but saw only people gawking. But he could hear it. The ticking, the rattling breath; he could smell the putrid decay of death—a black cloak billowed. 

Sirius sprung up, a yelp still on his lips when he realized the cloak was a wizard headed to work; the hall was its normal size, and no one was standing at the end of it. 

He frantically looked around, his robes soaked in sweat, his hair clinging to his face. Sirius tried to calm his rapid breaths but couldn’t. So, he ran. He ran and didn’t stop until he had reached the apparition point where he disapparated back to Potter Manor, not even giving James a second thought. 

Once he was home, Sirius dashed to his room and slammed the door closed. He locked and silenced the room before letting out a screaming sob. 

Get it together! He thought as the tears poured out, None of this was real! It’s all in your head, you crackpot. Get. It. Together! Sirius began beating his fist into his head as he walk/crawled to the shower. He managed to turn the water on and crawl inside and sit under the spray before the fear took over. 

For a moment, he was back in Azkaban. He could smell the death, the staleness in the air, the dampness of the ground. The screams and moans from the other prisoners was overwhelming; Sirius clutched his hands to his ears to stifle the sound. It wouldn’t leave. 

He could feel the hot spray on his head and back as it trickled down to his feet. 

Sirius stayed like that for a long time; just sitting in the shower as the water beat down on him. He had heard Remus and James calling for him, but he had ignored it. He needed to be alone. It wasn’t until sometime later, when he started to calm down, that he realized the moaning, the cries, he heard were from himself. That was enough to get him to open his eyes and see that he was still in the shower at James’ house. To remember that James and Harry weren’t dead, that he wasn’t in Azkaban, and that nothing was as bad as it had seemed. 

Even knowing all of this, Sirius stayed in the shower until well after James returned from the Ministry. 

~ID~

Scrimgeour indicated the chair in front of him and said, “Please, sit. I imagine this is going to be a brief meeting?”

James nodded, “I believe so, yes.”

“So, have you considered my proposal?”

“I have,” James began, “But I’ve also received some other proposals that I think were quite persuasive. I don’t know that I really want to work for the organization that put my best friend in prison.”

Scrimgeour scowled, “Even if that person has agreed to become a part of this department?”

“That’s Sirius’ prerogative. I’m not sure that he will ever take the exam if you want my opinion on that subject.” James replied. 

“I would sincerely hope that Lord Black wouldn’t come here to make promises he doesn’t intend to keep.”

“I don’t think it’s that he doesn’t intend to keep his promises; more so that he won’t end up being able to keep his promise. But, I could be wrong. For now, we’re here to discuss myself and my employment.”

Scrimgeour nodded, “Yes. Please, what is your decision? Will you be finishing your training as Lord Black has agreed and joining my department? You read in my letter that your pay would be about 50,000 galleons a year as well as benefits and yearly raises. After a few years you may be able to be promoted from an A1 to an A2 or even a supervisor depending on your history with the department. I honestly can’t think you’d get a better job offer than what we’ve given you, Lord Potter.”

“To be honest with you, Scrimgeour, I’ve received an offer that would allow me to do something I love doing for 100,000 galleons a year plus benefits and other incentives. Can your department meet similar benefits and terms?”

Scrimgeour balked, “Well, I mean, over time I’m sure your wages would—”

“After a year, maybe two, my pay would increase to 150,000 galleons. Did I mention the sign on bonus of 20,000 galleons?” 

“Lord Potter! You know damn well the Ministry could never compete with wages that high. Even the Minister himself only makes about 200,000 galleons a year! I mean, even I make less than what you’re asking.”

James stood up from his seat, “Well, then, I think we’re finished here. I won’t take a lower wage for a high stress job. Especially now that I have a family to think about and the war is over for now. Thank you for your kind offer, Mr. Scrimgeour, but I will have to decline it.” 

“Well, we had to try, didn’t we, Lord Potter?” Scrimgeour commented as he held out his hand for James to shake, “Can I ask who you’ll be working for?”

“I’ll be a reserve chaser for Pride of Portree. Hopefully this time next year I’ll be a starting player. I doubt your department could have come close to the compensory package the team is offering me.”

“Then why come all this way to speak to me?”

“Consider it professional curtesy. Besides, my mate wanted to come in and I didn’t want him to be alone when he did that after everything he’s been through here at the Ministry.” 

“Well, if you ever decide to retire, keep us in mind. You would make an excellent asset to our team.”

“I will, thank you,” James said as he headed towards the office door. 

James opened the office door and stepped out into the hallway and looked around. Sirius wasn’t in the seat where James had left him nor could James see him anywhere down the hall or in the main office area. Worried, James walked over to the receptionist.

“Did you see where my friend went? He was just here,” James asked the receptionist.

“He left about five minutes ago. Went tearing down the hall to the lifts like a madman. Can’t say I’m surprised given his track record.”

James’ eyes hardened as they bore into the receptionist, “I hope you have a fantastic day, sir.”

The receptionist looked at James, his face full of confusion as James rushed out the door. 

James ran down the hall and to the lifts, questions and fear running through his mind as he waited for the ding. Once the lift arrived, he got in and waited to be taken back to the atrium level. 

When the lift shuttered to a stop at the atrium James stepped out and looked around the large room, searching for Sirius’ face. Unable to find him, James went over to the security desk.

“Hey, do you remember the gentleman who was here with me when I came in?” James asked the guard.

“Yeah, the guy with the black hair?”

“Yes! Did you see him?”

“Oh yeah, about five minutes ago.”

James breathed a sigh of relief, “Where did he go?”

“He ran to the apparition point and left. Sorry, we don’t track where people apparate to.”

“That’s ok. I think I know where he went. Thank you for your help.”

James ran over to the apparition point and disapparated home. 

~ID~

Remus looked around as he walked down the road leading away from Potter Manor. He could no longer see the Manor as he walked away because of the protection spells put in place on it. The home simply disappears from sight once you get so far away from it. Remus wasn’t concerned, he knew it would show back up when he got closer again.

He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but Remus knew he would recognize it once he saw it. He continued down the road at a leisurely pace, taking in the sights around him. It was a surprisingly warm day outside with a brisk breeze filling the air. He still needed a light jacket, but that didn’t both him. 

Remus passed by several quaint houses on his walk as well as a park or two. He stopped off in one of those parks and found himself a nice bench to sit on. It was under the shade of a wide oak tree next to the sandbox of the playground. A few small children were running around in it or building little castles. Remus smiled as he thought to himself that Harry would probably enjoy a place like this where he could run around and interact with other children his age. 

As he smiled, he pulled out a large book he had brought with him, The Rise and Fall of The Dark Arts. Remus, James, and Sirius all knew that the war from a few years ago was far from over and Remus intended to keep himself informed on the dark arts and warfare. His hope was to have a plan of strategy for when Voldemort eventually rose again. 

Remus sat reading under the oak tree for a long time. By the time he looked up when someone took the seat next to him, the day had progressed into early afternoon. 

He looked over at the woman who had sat next to him. She was pretty with light brown hair and brown eyes. She had a petite frame about her and she, too, had a book in her lap. She looked over at Remus and smiled. She had a pretty smile, her teeth were white and straight but she had two overly large front teeth. She looked down at his book and then back up at Remus. 

“The History of The World Wars,” she commented, “History buff?” 

Remus smiled, of course she couldn’t see the real title, the chances of him running into a witch in a muggle park? Really. 

“Yes, you could say that,” Remus said, “It’s been quite an interesting read. What have you got?”

She smiled and held up her book, “Nothing quite as interesting I’m afraid. The Textbook of Preventive and Community Dentistry is quite dense and boring to most, I suppose.”

Remus laughed, “Are you a dentist, then?” 

“I hope to be. I graduate next year.”

“Well, I wish you the best of luck, then. I never understood why anyone would want to look into people’s mouths all day but I suppose we need dentists, don’t we?”

The woman laughed, “Yes, I suppose we do.”

Just then a small girl with curly brown hair ran up to the woman, “Mummy, can I has a juice?”

The woman opened her purse and pulled out a small child’s cup full of juice and handed it to the girl, “There you go, little bug. Are you having fun?”

“Yes,” the girl said between guzzles, “Thank you!” she said as she handed the cup back and ran off.

“My daughter,” the woman said, indicating the little girl, “She’s four but you would never know it. We just moved to the area so I was hoping she could meet some of the other children. Which one is yours?”

“Mine isn’t here right now. Well, I should say I don’t actually have a child. My nephew, who I’m helping my best friend raise, is with friends for the day. I was just thinking that he would love this park. He’s three himself; four in July.”

“Oh, mine just turned four in September! You should give us a ring if you decide to bring your nephew here sometime; I’m sure they would have a grand time.” 

The woman handed him her business card as she smiled. Remus read the name on the card, Jean Woodward, “Thank you Mrs. Woodward, I’ll definitely let you know when I bring Harry to the park.”

“Oh, it’s just Miss, thank you. I look forward to it!”

“Miss Woodward, then. I need to get going, but I’m sure we’ll see you and your daughter soon.” 

“Take care now!” Jean called as she opened her book and pulled out a highlighter. 

Remus nodded and headed back up the road towards Potter Manor.

Sometime later Remus sat in the kitchen with a cup of tea and his book. He hadn’t been sitting there long before he heard the crack of someone apparating into the Manor; he looked over the brim of his tea cup to try to see who had come home. He hadn’t been expecting anyone for a while. As he set his cup down, he could hear someone running up the stairs. 

Remus stood up and walked into the entry way out of the kitchen and walked towards the staircase. 

“Sirius? James?” Remus called up the stairs. 

Hearing no reply, Remus climbed the steps and walked down the hall, calling for his friends. Still hearing no reply, Remus began growing concerned and pulled out his wand. 

Remus walked up to James’ bedroom door and pushed it open only to find it dark and empty. It looked as if James hadn’t been in his room since this morning. The air was still and slightly stale. 

Closing the door, Remus headed further down the hall, passed his own room, to Sirius’ room and pushed on the door. It was locked. 

Remus furrowed his brow and unlocked the door with a waive of his wand and pushed it open. He stepped inside to find the room dark, light spilling from the cracks under the bathroom door. Remus could hear the water running into the bathroom but couldn’t hear Sirius. 

“Sirius?” Remus called out. There was no response. 

Remus knocked on the bathroom door, “Sirius, are you in there?”

When no response came, Remus tried magically unlocking the door. This time he was met with resistance. He waived his wand over the door and determined that Sirius had cast a magical lock on the door as well as a silencing charm. The only reason he could hear the water going was because of the pipes in the walls. All it was was a rushing noise. 

Remus turned around, intending to call Gus or Cirri to come help with the situation when James came running through the doorway. 

“Have you seen Sirius? He left me at the Ministry,” James asked breathlessly.

Remus jabbed his thumb behind him, “He’s in there, but I can’t get in. He magically sealed the door and he silenced it. What happened? Was he ok?”

“I don’t know. He seemed ok when he came out of the office. A little off put, bitter, but ok I suppose. Then when I came out of the office he was gone. The receptionist and guard said he went running out and then disapparated. I figured he came back here.”

James ran his fingers through his hair, “He’s not ok, is he?”

Remus looked back at the door and sighed, “No, I don’t think he is.”


	15. Chapter Fifteen: Child's Play

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. I keep forgetting I cross-post here and on Fanfiction.net! Please enjoy this chapter.

Ginny wandered out to the pond behind the Burrow and found Harry and Ron skipping rocks over the water. She skipped over to them, her red hair breezing out behind her. 

“What you doing?” she asked Ron and Harry.

“Go away, Ginny,” Ron snapped.

Ginny placed her fists on her hips and said, “That’s not nice! I staying!” 

Her stance reminded Harry very much of Mrs. Weasley. He glanced at Ron who was rolling his eyes. 

“You’re too little, Ginny! Go away.”

“I am not too little!” Ginny shouted as she stomped her foot.

“You are too! And you’re a girl! Harry and I don’t want you here.”

Ginny turned to Harry, “Can I play too?”

Harry glanced over at Ron again and back at Ginny. He wasn’t sure how to answer without hurting one of his new friends. 

Ginny looked at Harry expectantly; when she realized he wasn’t going to say anything, she stomped her foot, angry tears welling in her eyes. “Fine! I don’t wanna play with you!” 

Harry watched as Ginny stomped off and looked back at Ron, “Why can’t Ginny play with us?”

“Because she’s annoying.”

“I don’t think she’s annoying,” Harry said as he looked at the ground. 

“She’s always bothering us, though.”

“But she’s so nice. And she’s good at throwing the quaffle.”

Ron shrugged, “So?”

“She’s also kind of scary,” Harry replied as he watched Ginny talking to the twins in the distance. He could vaguely see the hint of mischief on their faces as they glanced Ron and Harry’s direction. 

Ron looked in the same direction as Harry. When he caught sight of the twins and Ginny he paled, “Uh, we should—we should go.” 

“Why?”

“Ginny’s super angry.”

“She didn’t seem that angry.”

“She’s talking to the twins, she’s angry.”

Harry frowned and then stood up. He carefully walked over to the twins and Ginny. They looked him up and down.

“What do you want?” Fred asked, “Haven’t you hurt Ginny’s feelings enough?”

“I didn’t mean to,” Harry said, “I don’t know why Ron said that.” 

“Because he’s a meany!” Ginny yelled. 

“Ginny, Ginny, Ginny,” George said.

“You need to learn the art of finesse,” Fred said.

“That’s how you get back at people.”

“And make them feel bad about what they did.”

“Let us teach you,” George finished. 

“Ginny, I’m sorry,” Harry said as he looked at his shoes.

Ginny frowned, her brown eyes dark as sparks flew around her, “You were mean!”

“I know. I’m sorry. Wanna play Gobstones?”

Ginny looked back at the twins before turning to Harry, “You can help us. If you’re done being a meany!” 

“Help you with what?” 

Fred and George exchanged looks with one another before Ginny replied, “Fred make his Teddy a pieder!”

“What’s a pieder?” Harry asked.

“She means a spider,” Fred corrected.

“We just need you to get him to hold it,” George said.

“It was my idea!” Ginny added.

“So, like a prank?”

“Definitely a prank,” Fred said.

“It’ll be so funny!” George said. 

“Then he won’t be a meany!” 

Harry smiled, “I can do that. Ron won’t be mad, right?”

“Maybe for a little. He’ll get over it,” George replied.

“Ok, I’ll do it.” 

Ginny grinned at Harry and beckoned him forward. The group of children gathered together to discuss their plans while Ron sat away from them throwing more rocks into the pond on the property. Sometime later, Harry ran over to Ron and asked if he wanted to play inside for a while since Fred, George, and Ginny were outside. Ron quickly agreed and led Harry inside and up to his room.

Ron showed him all around the small room and showed him some of the quidditch posters he had. Ron seemed to favor the Chudley Cannons but he also had some Puddlemere United merch and stuff from Pride of Portree. Harry was impressed with the moving posters of the quidditch stars and how they passed the quaffle back and forth. He was especially impressed with the seeker who was zooming around the poster at top speed. 

Tearing his eyes away from the posters, Harry asked, “Do you have any toys up here?”

“Yeah!” Ron replied excitedly, “I have some blocks and a teddy and my chess set from my brother Charlie.”

“I thought Fred and George are your brothers?” 

“They are. I have three other brothers. Charlie and Bill are at school.”

“That’s so cool. I can’t wait to go to school. Can I see your toys?”

Ron nodded and pulled out the teddy and the chess set. He picked up the teddy and carried it with him as he went to find the blocks. 

Harry looked back at the partially opened door to Ron’s room and saw a pair of dark brown eyes looking in at him. Harry gave a quick nod before he turned back to look at Ron. He watched in horror as Ron’s teddy bear sprouted several long, black, hairy legs and then a large, black head. As the legs brushed Ron’s arm, he giggled and looked down at the object tickling him. His blue eyes widened in horror as he saw the large, black spider he was holding close to his body. 

Suddenly, Ron threw the spider across the room as he screamed. Harry dove out of the way of the spider as it came whizzing passed him in the small attic room. 

Ginny, Fred, and George fell into Ron’s room as they laughed at the scene before them. The spider was scuttling around behind them near Ron’s bed. Ron himself was crouched in a corner of his room rocking back and forth, crying. Harry simply sat there, confused. He had enjoyed playing the prank with Ginny, but he felt bad for making Ron so upset. 

Harry turned his eyes towards the door to the room as he heard hurried and loud footsteps climbing up the stairs towards them. None of the Weasley children had noticed the coming commotion yet. 

The door to Ron’s room burst open to reveal an angry and confused Mrs. Weasley. Her brown eyes scanned the room for the source of the commotion. She noted the three children laughing, Harry staring at her, and Ron bawling before she noticed the large spider that was now making its way up the wall to the ceiling. 

Mrs. Weasley lifted her wand and shouted, “Finite Incantatem!” 

The spider suddenly fell from its resting place on the ceiling and landed on Ron’s bed as a teddy bear once more. 

Rounding on her children, Mrs. Weasley yelled, “And who’s idea was this? Do you have any idea how much you’ve traumatized your brother?”

All three Weasley children looked at Mrs. Weasley innocently while she stared back, fire in her eyes. 

“Well?”

“Mum, it was just a bout of accidental magic!” Fred pleaded.

“Bullocks!” Mrs. Weasley snapped, “One or more of you planned this and I intend to find out who did it.”

“It was an accident, mummy!” Ginny plead.

“Fred, George; were you behind this outrageous prank?”

“Mum!”

“How could you assume it was us?”

“There were two other people in this room!”

Mrs. Weasley sternly looked at her twin sons as the shouted indignantly at their mother. 

“It was me, Mummy,” Ginny said to her mother, her eyes wide and sad.

“Oh, Ginny dear, I know you couldn’t have done this,” Mrs. Weasley assured her daughter, “You’re much too young to think of doing something like this. As for you two, you’re both grounded for the rest of the day. To your room.”

Fred and George looked at their mother incredulously, “Mum! We didn’t plan this!”

“We didn’t even change the bear!” 

“March!” Mrs. Weasley said as she pointed towards the door. 

Fred and George hung their heads and walked out the door, muttering to one another as they glanced back at Ginny who was standing before her mother smiling politely. 

“Mummy, can I have a biscuit?” Ginny asked Mrs. Weasley sweetly.

“Of course, Ginny dear. Come down to the kitchen. You can have it while you help me make dinner. You boys play nice up here, ok?”

Harry nodded back at Mrs. Weasley as he watched her and Ginny walk out of the room. Ginny looked back at Harry and gave him a brilliant smile. Harry smiled back and felt himself blush. He decided that he liked Ginny Weasley and that being her friend was certainly a better alternative to being her enemy. 

~ID~

Around dinner time, Remus and James found themselves sitting in the living room watching the TV, neither of them paying it too much mind. Remus had his ears tuned towards the stairs, hoping to catch the sound of footsteps descending them. So far everything had remained quiet at Potter Manor. 

The two men knew one of them would have to leave soon to pick Harry up from the Weasley’s house. So far they hadn’t heard from them since Harry’s tantrum earlier than day and assumed that everything was going well. 

James looked over at Remus who was sitting in the armchair with the recliner out. They hadn’t spoken yet about James’ interviews at the Ministry and Portree’s office. He kept turning over the conversations in his mind. Was he making the right decision?

“Hey, Moony? Can I get your opinion on something?”

Remus continued to stare towards the doorway leading to the staircase for several moments before realizing that James had asked him a question. Remus tore his eyes away and looked at James, his eyes glazed over and distant, “What did you say?”

“Can I get your opinion about these job offers?”

“Oh, sure. I’m not sure what help I’ll be, though. I haven’t been able to hold a job since we graduated.” 

James frowned, “You haven’t had a job in almost five years?”

“Nope.” 

“Have you thought about talking to Dumbledore? You’ve always wanted to teach and out of all the wizarding schools he would be the most likely to give you a job.”

“No. I could never subject the students of Hogwarts to learn from me. It was bad enough I was there for seven years as a student.”

“Remus. You and I both know that Dumbledore can make it safe for you to teach. I’ve heard about this new potion—”

“I have, too, and I have my doubts about it. I will not talk to Dumbledore. Now, what did you need my opinion about?”

James looked into Remus’ golden eyes and made sure to file away this conversation for later; he wasn’t done discussing this. 

“I wanted to get your opinion on these job offers. I have one from the Ministry to finish my auror training and one from Pride of Portree to be a second-string chaser with a promise of moving up. I don’t know which to choose. Sure, being a chaser comes with so many more benefits and a higher pay, but do you think I’ll get bored of always playing quidditch? I never imagined it as a profession, just a hobby.”

“I think,” Remus began slowly as he set aside the book on ancient runes that was in his hands, “that you would get tired and stressed out being an auror. We both know the war isn’t really over. Do you really want to be working in the auror department when he rises again? Especially when you know we’ll have to train Harry so he stands the best chance against him?

“You also love flying. I’ve never seen you happier, other than when you were with Lily, than when you’re playing quidditch. It’s more than just a hobby for you, Prongs, and I think you’d find yourself enjoying your work life better if you’re doing something that you love.

“You could also talk to Dumbledore about teaching or you could go into research. Lord knows you make enough money that you don’t need a real job.”

James thought for a few minutes. Did he really want to go into a profession that he knew was going to cause him major issues during his lifetime if Voldemort rose again? Remus had a point, why should he put himself through that and stress himself out to the point that he can’t properly train Harry or enjoy life, really. But would he be able to enjoy playing quidditch as a job. Sure he loved it, but is that really what he wanted to do? He had never considered playing professionally, he never thought he had the skills and then with the war, he had ignored that option completely to be able to do is part for the wizarding community. But now that the war was on hold, maybe that’s something he could do. He did love flying more than anything. 

“Thank you, Moony. That helps a lot. I’ll have to owl Kalvin and give him my decision. Hopefully I’m not too late to join the team.”

Remus smiled, “So Pride of Portree, eh? I always pegged you as a Puddlemere United kind of bloke.”

“Puddlemere is a joke! Their seeker is so hit or miss that it doesn’t matter how good the chasers are, if they can’t keep 150 up they stand no chance at winning. Their inconsistency will always lose them the world cup.”

“I must admit that outside of the house championship I don’t know much about quidditch. I didn’t bother to keep up with it while you were in Saint Mungos,” Remus shifted in his seat and the book he had set aside slipped off the arm of the couch and fell to the floor, a small card flying out of it. 

Remus and James both bent over to pick up the book and card at the same time. Remus managed to snag the book but didn’t reach the business card before James did. 

James glanced at the card and smiled as he handed it back, “Who’s Jean Woodward and why do you have her business card?” 

Remus blushed, “She’s just a woman I met at the park. She has a daughter about Harry’s age. We thought it would be nice for them to play together sometime since we live so close. She’s a dentistry student, a muggle.”

“Oh my. And you put her card into your book so you could call her for this playdate? I’m sure she wasn’t attractive at all, was she? Married though, I assume.”

“She may have been, I didn’t notice. And, no, she’s not married. I didn’t inquire further. And I don’t have relationships, you know that, James.”

“Relationships, no. Flings and a shag, yes. So she’s single then, eh?” 

“Well, that’s not what this is. I’m hoping that Harry can have a few muggle friends while he’s a child. I think it will help round him out, don’t you?”

James shrugged, “I’m all for Harry having any friend he wants. Especially if that means you get to continue to talk to the attractive Ms. Woodward.

“Give her a call. Harry and this girl can have a playdate at the park later this week. I’m sure he would enjoy getting out of the house for a while. I can schedule a training then as well.”

“Oh, I had figured you’d take Harry to the park.”

“Remus, it’s clear she wanted you to be the one to take Harry on the playdate, not me. If she wanted me, she would have said Harry’s dad could bring him, not you.”

“I suppose I could use the time to read up on these runes. They’ve discovered a few new ones and they’re hoping to be able to fully translate some ancient spells and documents sitting in the Ministry. I’ve heard some of them might have to do with lycanthrope.”

“A cure, you mean?”

“A cure, yes, hopefully. Or, more likely, more information on the disease. Specifically, how it’s transmitted other than by a bite, what happens when a person is bit by a wolf outside of the full moon cycle, information about our enhanced senses like smell and hearing even outside of the change. Anything like this will be extremely useful in creating a cure and enacting new legislation for the betterment of wolfkind.”

“You’ve put a lot of thought into this.”

“I’ve always had a fondness for runes. While you were sick, I spent a lot of time working on them and learning about them. I’ve gained quite a bit of knowledge about the area.”

“Wow! I never got into the subject. I was always more interested in—”

“Women? Quidditch? Making your hair look messier than it really was to impress women? Mainly a certain Lily Evans?”

“On the nose, Moony. Go make that phone call.”

Remus sighed and stood up, “Fine. But I’m going to complain the entire way there.”

“No you won’t!” James called as Remus wandered out of the room, grumbling. 

Once Remus had left the room, James turned towards the table in front of him and pulled several pieces of parchment his way and picked up the quill in front of him. 

First, James wrote a letter to Kalvin regarding the position with Pride of Portree.

Kalvin,

After looking into the other offers I received for employment and discussing them with my housemates, I wanted to write to you to accept your offer for a position as a chaser for Pride of Portree. I will need all new equipment as my was lost during the explosion that took place at my home several years ago. I’ll need a new broom, gloves, robes, shoes, and new prescription goggles as my glasses simply won suffice should I need to play in a game during the first year or so as a second-string player. 

I hope that my acceptance doesn’t come to you too late and that there is still a place for me on Portree’s team. I look forward to discussing my schedule with you over the next few days. 

Thank you again.

James Potter

James quickly read over the letter before moving on to the next one. 

Scrimgeour,

After considering your offer of a position in the auror department upon completion of my training, I have decided to decline. I have chosen to move forward on another venture that was offered to me. However, should I ever decide a career change is necessary, I will keep your office in mind.

Thank you again for the opportunity.

James Potter

Satisfied, James pulled out one last clean piece of parchment and began writing.

Professor Dumbledore,

I’m writing to you on behalf of Remus Lupin. I’m not sure if you remember him or not from my year at Hogwarts but I was hoping you could give me some direction. 

Remus has had difficulty holding a job due to his furry problem and he refuses to owl you for assistance. I think he would make a wonderful teacher and I know that he’s always wanted to be one. I was hoping you might know of a school, or even you, who is looking for a professor in either Arithmancy, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Ancient Runes, or Muggle Studies? I’m sure if Remus knew of a position, or if you came to him specifically, he wouldn’t be able to turn down such a good opportunity. Especially if he knows that you and the other professors agree that he is a good fit for the position. 

I was also hoping that we could schedule a meeting to discuss the subject of my and Lily’s hiding during the war. We both know this isn’t over and I want to be as prepared for his return as we can be. This means training Harry from an early age and equipping him with the knowledge he needs to succeed.

I hope you’re well. Send my best to Minnie!

James

Smiling, James walked to the owlery alone, turning over everything that’s happened in the last few months in his mind. Waking up, Lily being dead, having Harry home and getting him reacclimated to life in the wizarding world, Sirius getting out of prison and the psychological fall out, and Remus being there for so long. Everything was sometimes so overwhelming. 

As he walked and thought, James almost didn’t notice Sirius sitting outside under a tree near the owlery. He was writing in a book that James had never seen. Unsure of whether he should stop, James simply continued walking until he heard Sirius call to him without looking up from his work.

“I’m sorry I ran out without you.”

James stopped and turned towards Sirius, “It’s alright, mate, I understand.”

“No, you don’t. I don’t either.”

“You were overwhelmed.”

“But why? I’m fine, nothing is wrong. So why am I acting like something is wrong? Everything just…it was so loud. There was too much.”

James walked over and sat next to Sirius but didn’t look at him, “Sometimes that happens. Have you thought about seeing a healer? I’m sure there’s someone who’s trained to handle what you’re going through.”

Sirius didn’t respond.

“I can help you find someone. Keep it quiet.”

“I’m fine. Let’s not worry about it, ok?”

“Sir—”

“What have you got there? A love letter for me?” Sirius tried to snatch the letters from James who, using his chaser’s speed, whipped them away.

“You wish, prat. These are for my job offers and for Dumbledore.”

“Why do you need to talk to Dumbledore?”

“About Voldemort and the prophecy.”

“Prophecy?” Sirius frowned.

“About Harry. We can talk about it later. I need to get these mailed. Are you sure you’re ok?”

“I’m fine, Prongs. Go mail your letters. We can talk over drinks later, ok?”

James nodded and stood up. He began walking towards the owlery before looking back at Sirius. He had gotten up and had walked back towards the Manor, the book and quill in his hands. Shaking his head, James hoped that Sirius would accept help from them. But knowing how hardheaded he was, James knew that it would take time. 

He turned and walked into the owlery and attached the letters to the owls that were resting inside. James stood silently as he watched them fly away, enjoying the peace and the silence of the room before heading back down to the house to floo to the Burrow to pick up Harry. 

~ID~

Remus dialed the number on the business card for the third time. As the phone rang, he contemplated hanging up again as his stomach tied itself into knots. Just as he was about to put the phone back on the receiver he heard a voice from the other end.

“Hello?” said the familiar female voice. 

“Ah, hello,” Remus began, flustered, “I was hoping to speak to Jean Woodward. Is she available?”

“Speaking,” Jean replied.

“Hi, yes, uh, this is Remus Lupin. We met at the park earlier today. I was reading—”

“A History of the World Wars! Yes, I remember you. What can I help you with?” 

“I was hoping that your daughter and my nephew would be able to have a playdate at the park later this week. Maybe Wednesday? Would you be available?”

“I think so, let me check quick,” Jean said.

The phone went silent for a moment as Jean ran to grab her planner and ran back to the receiver.

“Yes. I have class until 2, but we could come around 3 or 4 and play for a while. Would that work?”

“That should be fine. Harry and I look forward to seeing you and…?” Remus trailed off, realizing that he had never heard Jean’s daughter’s name.

“Hermione. Hermione and I will be delighted to see you then. Wednesday at 3 then?”

“Sounds perfect.”

“See you then! By, Remus,” Jean said quietly.

“See you, Jean.” 

Remus smiled as he heard the click of Jean hanging up her phone. He slowly put his back on the hook before walking back to the library more excited for a weekday than he had ever been.


	16. Chapter Sixteen: Women and Shenanigans

Chapter Sixteen: Women and Shenanigans

James stepped out of the fireplace at the Burrow to an extremely busy Mrs. Weasley cleaning the dishes from dinner. She looked over at him as she heard the fire roaring and smiled at James.

“Welcome back Lor—I mean James.”

“Hello Molly, I’m here to pick Harry up. Is he around?”

“Yes, I think they all went into the living room. I assume you heard about his break down earlier today?”

“Remus told me. Thank you for flooing him. I’m glad that Harry was able to open up on his own though. How was he the rest of the day?”

“Oh he was so well behaved. Fred and George pulled a prank on Ron, he’s quite traumatized. They turned his teddy into a spider! Where they come up with these ideas, honestly. Just so you know in case Harry brings it up.”

“Do Fred and George pull pranks often?” James asked, his curiosity peaking.

“I’m afraid so. I can’t figure out why for the life of me. And in front of their sister! I couldn’t believe it. She even tried to take the blame herself; honestly!”

“Hmm. Are you sure Ginny didn’t have anything to do with the pranking?”

“Oh I doubt it. Ginny is a girl’s girl; she wouldn’t have anything to do with pranks. 

Mr. Weasley, who had been listening from the doorway, spoke up, “Now Molly, you know that isn’t true. Ginny is the mastermind behind a good bit of the pranking done in our house. She’s just as bad as Fred and George. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was telling the truth.”

“Arthur! She’s only two and a half.”

“And she’s a bright two and a half, Molly,” Arthur supplied, “James, don’t ever let her innocent face fool you. I love my little princess but she is a mastermind at pranks and revenge; she gets it from her brothers and I dare say they encourage it.”

“She sounds like quite the spitfire,” James said laughing, “How did Harry get along with the kids?”

“He and Ron hit it off immediately. He seemed weary of Fred and George, for good reason. They’re good children and I love them but they need to reign in some of those pranks and magic. They’re almost six. And he and Ginny seemed to get along very well. By the end of the day he stuck to her and Ron like glue. Thank you for letting him come over, we’d love to have him again whenever you’d like.”

“I’m glad he made friends with them so quickly. I was concerned that he would be too shy to really connect. Maybe next time we can have them over to our house. We have a few muggle games I think they would enjoy playing.”

“Muggle games?”

“Yeah. We have some muggle board games and a few video games. Lily—she always wanted Harry to be a part of both worlds. I’m trying to do that for her.”

“Oh, how sweet!”

“Why don’t the five of them come over on Saturday? You two can have some time to yourselves.”

“That sounds lovely. Though, I’m not sure how much Percy will enjoy the trip. He’s more of a bookish type than the playing games type.”

“That’s fine, he can hang out in our library. I’m sure he’ll find something to read in there.”

“You have a library? He would love that!”

“Awesome! Then send them on over on Saturday. They can have lunch and dinner at our house if that’s ok.”

“That sounds wonderful. Come on, I’ll take you to the kids.”

Mrs. Weasley led James into the living room where they found Ron, Ginny, and Harry all laying on the couch together. Ginny was laying with her head on Ron’s lap while Harry was curled up into the arm. James smiled at Mrs. Weasley and bent over to pick Harry up, trying to be as gentle as possible in lifting him so that he didn’t wake. 

James shifted Harry into his arms so that he could carry him back to the fireplace. He turned and waived goodbye to Mrs. Weasley before stepping into the fireplace and heading home. 

~ID~

Harry woke on Wednesday morning as excited as he could be. He was meeting a new friend today at the park with his Uncle Moony. They were going to get to play all around the park together all day. 

Harry quickly dressed himself in a pair of dark green trousers and an orange shirt and sandals with socks before rushing down the stairs and into the kitchen. He found his Uncle Moony already sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in his hand, the newspaper in his other. 

“Good morning Doe, how did you sleep?” 

“Ok. I’m too excited to go to the park!” 

Remus laughed and patted the chair next to him, “Well, you definitely can’t go until you eat some breakfast. Besides, we aren’t meeting Hermione and her mom until two so you have some time still. But we could do something later; maybe practice your reading or learn something new!”

Gus walked over to the table and placed a plate of pancakes in front of Harry, “You is eating all of these, Master Harry. You was skipping on food yesterday but you is needing to stay strong to grow!” 

“Ok, Gus,” Harry took a big bite of the pancakes before him, “Mmm, are these snickerdoodle?”

“I is knowing they is Master Harry’s favorite!” 

“Thanks Gus!” Harry quickly scarfed down the pancakes. In a few minutes his plate sat empty before him. 

“So, Harry, what do you want to do until it’s time to go to the park?”

“Can I fly on my broom?”

“Sure, Doe. Just make sure you stay on the property and no higher than the treetops, ok? I’ll let your dad know where you wandered off to.” 

“Thanks Uncle Moony!” Harry called as he ran out of the room.

Remus smiled and looked back down at the newspaper before him. Today was going to be a good day.

Several hours later Harry and Remus walked off the Potter property and onto the little road that leads to the park down the street. Harry had packed a small bag with some snacks and juice as well as a few toys that he thought Hermione might enjoy playing with like his blocks and a few shovels for the sand. 

Remus and Harry bobbed along the road as the park in the distance grew larger before their eyes. As Harry’s excitement grew, he began bouncing and skipping while he walked, practically vibrating with anticipation of a new friend. Remus, on the other hand, felt quite the opposite. His stomach was in knots and he was quite nervous for the play date. Harry hadn’t, to the Marauders’ knowledge, had a playdate with a muggle child before. He was hoping beyond hope that Harry wouldn’t perform any accidental magic in front of them. 

“Harry,” Remus began, “Before we get to the park, we need to go over a very important rule, ok?”

“What’s that?”

“No magic. You can’t do any magic or talk about the wizarding world as if it were real. Ms. Woodward and Hermione are muggles, ok?”

“What’s a mugler?”

Remus laughed at Harry’s pronunciation, “A muggle is someone born without magic.”

“Like Dudley?”

“Yes, like Dudley. This means that they don’t know anything about the wizarding world and they can’t find out about it. Ok?”

“Ok,” Harry said disappointedly. 

“Alright. Now let’s go find a nice bench so I can read while you play.”

Harry smiled and rushed towards the playground and quickly found a bench. Remus smiled at Harry’s enthusiasm and headed to the spot Harry had found and made himself comfortable in the shade. He let Harry run off, promising to call him back when Hermione had arrived. 

Remus didn’t have to wait long before a small shadow crossed over him and he heard a very loud and excited squeal. He looked up and into the face of Jean. 

He smiled, “Afternoon, Jean. Harry! Come back over here; Hermione has arrived!” 

“Hello Remus,” Jean said as she took the seat next to him, “I hope you weren’t waiting long. My class ran over.”

“No, not long at all.”

Remus looked up as Harry ran over to him, his green eyes alight with excitement. The small girl next to him pressed herself closer to her mother’s legs before Jean gave her a gentle push and a smile. 

“Hello,” Hermione said to Harry, “My name is Hermione. What’s yours?”

“I’m Harry! Harry Potter. Do you wanna go play on the slide?”

“Ok,” Hermione said a little nervously.

Harry, remembering how Ginny helped him when he was nervous, took Hermione’s hand in his and led her toward the slide. Hermione seemed to relax a little as they walked and began talking rapidly to Harry about spending time at the park and her mom being in school. She was extremely well spoken for a four-year-old child. 

“She speaks well for her age. Is she in school already?” Remus asked Jean.

“She’s in preschool right now. They’ve been very impressed with her and so am I.”

“Well it sounds like she has a bright future ahead of her.”

The two adults smiled at each other before each pulling out their respective book. They sat like that for awhile while Harry and Hermione played together. The two children ran around the park playing all sorts of imaginary games. They played everything from astronauts to safari explorers. Harry had even come up with a game about searching ancient ruins and finding hidden treasure. He had based the game on what he had heard from Ron about what his brother Bill wanted to do when he finished at Hogwarts. 

Remus and Jean spent much of the afternoon reading off and on and talking to one another about their pasts. Remus told Jean about his time at an abroad boarding school where he met his best friends as well as his dreams of working on a cure for cancer. Cancer was, of course, his code for lycanthrope. They discussed how Harry had come into his life and how close they are. Jean was especially interested in how he, Sirius, and James all lived together and were raising Harry. She thought it was sweet and admirable. For some reason, Remus felt incredibly comfortable talking to Jean. It reminded him of all those fireside talks he had shared with Lily during their Hogwarts years. 

Jean told Remus about her time in college. She had spent her undergrad time abroad in America at Stanford and earned her B.S. in biology and premed. She then came back to England to complete dentistry school where she had met Hermione’s father. They had had a few dates but he turned out to be a not so great person as Jean had put it. Remus suspected that something more had occurred on that front but he didn’t pry. When Jean had discovered she was pregnant, she had told Hermione’s father who had decided he didn’t want anything to do with the child. So, Jean decided to raise Hermione on her own. Jean had just begun her last year of schooling and talked animatedly about the offices she had applied to. Her grades would allow her to work at some of the top offices in Brittan. She also spoke highly of her close friend, Rick Granger, and how they had been friends since they began school together. 

“So, are you and Rick dating, then?”

“What would give you that idea?”

“Well, I mean, you two sound so close.”

Jean frowned, “No. Rick doesn’t see me that way and he’s been head over for another woman in our class, Shawna. I’ve decided that it’s time to move on and accept that Rick will never see me as more than his good friend. I can live with that.”

Remus looked at Jean. She was looking at him over the tops over eyelashes, her bangs hanging over her eyes, slightly obscuring them from his view. He looked at her small, pink lips which were curved up into a smile. He smiled back at her as he ran his fingers over the stubble on his face. He was suddenly conscious of the fact that he hadn’t shaved that day. Why didn’t he think of that? 

Jean tucked a stray bit of hair that had fallen into her face behind her ear, “Maybe we could meet for drinks sometime. Hermione’s grandparents are going to look after her this weekend and I could certainly use the time out of the house.” 

Remus smiled, “I could probably arrange for drinks. Did you have anywhere in mind?”

“Well, there’s this new bar called the Full Moon. I’ve heard good things about their wine bar and it’s not too far from here.”

Remus snorted, he couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of the name of the bar. With tears in his eyes from laughing he said, “I think that sounds like a lovely idea. You can tell me how your exam on Friday goes.”

“Should we meet there, then? How about 8 on Saturday?” 

“That sounds perfect.” 

~ID~

James returned home after a late practice with the Portree team. His muscles ached from having not used them or played quidditch in years. As he now couldn’t turn his head without stinging pain, he was beginning to wonder if he had made the right decision career wise. 

As he grabbed a beer from the fridge, twisted the cap off, and took a long swig from the bottle. The dark, amber liquid felt wonderful on his dry tongue. Why he didn’t think to bring more than one bottle of water to practice was beyond him. 

He took the bottle of beer with him and hopped into the shower. James was of the group of people who fully and completely believed that a cold, crisp shower beer was absolutely necessary when one felt as shitty as he did right then. And, honestly? He had never tasted anything quite as good as that beer did while he stood under the scalding water. 

James leaned his hands against the side of the shower and let the water beat down on his back. As he stood there, he heard a knock at the door. 

“Shower!” he called.

“Can I come in?”

“Who is it?” 

“Sirius.”

“Uh, yeah? I’m in the shower though.”

“That’s fine,” Sirius said as he opened the door, “You won’t make me feel any less attractive by being naked.” 

James rolled his eyes as he took a swig of his beer, “Yeah, because that was my concern. What do you need that couldn’t wait for my post work out shower to be over?”

Sirius sighed and slid down the side of the shower next to the door and sat on the floor, his legs spread out, “I just wanted to relax somewhere and you were offering a free sauna.”

“Uh huh. Spill.”

“I was bored. Want to go to the bar while Harry is with Moony?”

“What bar?” 

“Dunno. Do you think that little pub is still there from when we were in school?”

“Might be. Are you talking about Brixon’s?”

“Is that the place with the old jukebox and dollar drinks until someone pisses happy hour?” 

“Yeah! I completely forgot about that place,” James said as he started washing his hair.

“Do you think they still do that happy hour?” 

“After we drank over £500 of alcohol? Probably not.”

“Hey, hey, hey! That’s the benefit of being a wizard. Being able to vanish your piss. Speaking of piss, I need to get piss ass tonight. You in? We could go now and have Minnie babysit. I bet she would.”

“I don’t know, Sirius. It’s pretty last minute,” James replied as he turned off the shower, “I’d hate to put her in a predicament.” 

“I already asked and she said she would be here at 7 once he was in bed. And Remus said he would meet us after Harry is asleep.”

“Oh,” James dried himself with a towel behind the steamy shower door, “Well. I guess I can’t really say no then, can I?”

“Nope. Plus, you need a night out too.”

“Alright, alright. Let me get changed.”

“I picked out your clothes. You’re going to love them!”

James sighed as he heard the door to the bathroom click shut behind Sirius. He stepped out from the shower and wiped away the buildup on the mirror so he could look at himself. He tried to make his hair look nice, but no matter which way the hot air from his wand blew it, it looked extremely messy. He sighed and put his glasses on; what did it matter how he looked anyway? 

After carefully wrapping a towel around his waist, James stepped out into his room and glanced around for the clothes Sirius supposedly left out for him. His eyes finally fell on the bed where a small pile of clothes were laying. He quickly picked up the shirt and looked at it and frowned.

Sirius had left James an extremely tight, white, V-neck t-shirt, a pair of dark denim skinny jeans, a medium blue denim jean jacket, and James’ favorite pair of black chucks. 

“Sirius!” James yelled, “What the hell is this? Why are all of these clothes so tight?”

“Tis the season, Prongs! Do as the Muggles do!” 

Sighing, James pulled the shirt over his head and looked down. It wasn’t nearly as tight as he had feared it would be, but it was still tighter than he would have liked it to be. He shrugged and turned to the jeans. He greatly feared whether his balls would fit in that monstrosity. 

Carefully, James tugged and pulled the jeans up his legs and over his thighs. At one point, they got stuck and he had to do a weird and awkward shimmy to get them to go all the way up to his hips. James sighed again when he realized that they sat quite low on his hips. Unable to button the pants, James ended up having to lay down on his bed before they would close. He found the jeans uncomfortably comfortable. 

Throwing the jacket on over the shirt, he noticed the hat laying on his bed for the first time. He looked at it and shook his head, he would avoid that part of this outfit. 

James did his best to walk down the stairs in his new clothes and met Sirius at the door to the Manor. Sirius nodded as if approving of his outfit, despite having chosen it, before they both walked out the door.

A while later Remus and Harry arrived back at the Manor. Harry was thoroughly exhausted from his expedition out of the house. He had had a blast with his new friend Hermione running around the park all afternoon. Remus had found that Hermione was extremely intelligent for her age as well as well spoken and articulate. They had made plans for Hermione to visit Potter Manor later the next week. Jean, having already been given the address, would have no issues seeing the home on the day in question. 

It didn’t take long for Remus to convince Harry to get into bed and go to sleep. They had already eaten dinner at the parka and Harry was quite exhausted. Remus had only just closed Harry’s bedroom door when Cirri appeared in front of him to inform him that Minerva had arrived.

Remus hurried down the stairwell and into the library to greet Minerva who was still cleansing the soot off of her robes. 

She looked up as Remus entered the room and smiled, “I hope I didn’t miss him. Is Harry still awake?”

“Sorry Minerva,” Remus replied, “I just got him into bed. He was downright exhausted after his day at the park. He made a new muggle friend.”

“Ah. Yes, well, I’ll just have to stop by this weekend and visit. To keep his chess skills sharp,” Minerva quickly added, a small smile gracing her face. 

“We could probably arrange for tea. James had been talking about inviting Sirius’ cousin Andromeda and her husband, Ted Tonks, over as well. I think you know their child, from my understanding they’re Hogwarts age—I don’t know much else about the child.”

“Ah, yes, Nymphadora Tonks. She begins at Hogwarts this coming year. I expect nothing but excellence from her given how both her parents were in school. She’s going to have a difficult time if she’s sorted into Slytherin given her mother’s apparent transgressions.”

“Apparent transgressions?”

“Yes. Her mother and father, Druella and Cygnus Black, removed her from the family tree when she decided to marry Ted Tonks instead of Rodolphus Lestrange. Her sister, Bellatrix, married him instead. It was quite the scandal with the war going on at the time. And, of course, her other sister, Narcissa, married Lucius Malfoy.”

“I hadn’t realized that there had been so much contention from the marriage. I admit I never thought about the fact that she had been a Black before her marriage to Ted. But given that Sirius was removed from the tree himself, I guess it doesn’t take much to have that happen. In any case, they’re looking for a sitter. They don’t know that they want to make—Nymphadora you said? Come to a boring dinner party.”

“Even with Harry here?”

“Well, there’s quite an age difference between them. Harry is three while Nymphadora is eleven.”

“I see. Well, I believe you had somewhere to get to, didn’t you? I brought some essays with me to mark. I might have quite a few extra if we can’t find a replacement for Professor Bilious. I may end up teaching Ancient Runes next year.”

“Dumbledore is looking for Runes professor?” Remus asked, his interest peeking. 

“Yes. hopefully we can find someone qualified for the post. And once again we need a Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor. I swear that post is cursed!” 

“Well, if I come across anyone during my research who would be interested in either post, I’ll certainly send them your way.”

“Please do,” Minerva began, “Though, have you considered applying for the post? I recall during your time at Hogwarts you were quite proficient at both subjects. And I know for a fact that you tutored several classmates in both.”

Remus ran his fingers through his hair and replied, “Yes, well, I hardly think I would be the best candidate given my…er, furry problem. Parents would lose their minds if they ever discovered my affliction.” 

“Oh posh, Remus. Be realistic. Times are changing and, honestly, many of the parents now a days either went to school with you or know of you. I’m sure most of them have the mental capacity to separate your affliction, as you call it, from your capabilities as a teacher.”

“Yes, well, I do think that I’m late meeting James and Sirius at this point. They’re probably both drunk already and need me to get them home. Thank you for watching over Harry, Minerva. We’ll see you in a few hours.

Minerva stood up straighter at this abrupt change in conversation and nodded curtly, “Take care of them, Remus. I’ll be in the library.”

By the time Remus arrived at the pub both James and Sirius were relatively drunk. Sirius was sitting at the table, his arms around two attractive women while James was animatedly going on about sports. The two women must have been witches, though Remus had never met them, because all four were discussing the latest quidditch game.

Remus grabbed a pint of ale from the bar and joined in the merriment. The two men accepted him gladly and pulled up a chair. The group of five drank together for a few hours. James and Sirius continued buying shots for the table. Remus turned the drinks down, preferring to nurse his one beverage that evening. 

Eventually, Sirius conned James into a round of karaoke. The two men butchered several songs including Stayin’ Alive, I will Survive, and, for some reason, Dancing Queen. Remus made sure to make a copy of the memory of the two men singing Dancing Queen for future blackmail. You never know when you’d need a bribed favor from a friend. 

Around 11 Remus was able to corral James and Sirius and drug them home. Sirius, of course, drug the two women back with him. Remus simply sighed as he led the four drunk adults back to Manor and let them into the house. 

He watched as Sirius led the women upstairs as James told Sirius that the women needed to be gone before Harry woke up. Remus made sure to yell up that silencing and locking charms were also required. No one needed to hear whatever was going to happen in that room.

Remus walked to the library after a drunk James. He watched in horror as the scene before him unfolded. 

“He—hello *hick* Minnieeee!” James slurred between hiccups.

“James, what has gotten into you?” Minerva replied.

“Jussa li’l vodka!” 

Minerva looked imploringly at Remus at the same moment that James leaned over and retched into a houseplant. 

“Oh god. Minerva I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize he was so…”

“Piss faced?” Minerva supplied.

“If you want to put it that way.” Remus started patting James’ back as he vomited on the orchid, “I’ve got this, Minerva, you’re welcome to head out. I’m going to let him finish, give him a potion, and then throw him in his room for the night.”

“If you’re sure,” Minerva said, her mouth pursed as she gathered her rolls of parchment. 

“I’m sure. Thank you for watching Harry. We’ll owl you about tea this weekend, too. Have a nice evening.”

“You too.”

With that, Minerva flooed back to Hogwarts. 

Somehow, Remus managed to get James to stop vomiting long enough for him to shove the potion down James’ throat. The potion stopped James’ queasiness and would, hopefully, prevent the massive hangover that would ensue from their evening shenanigans. He helped James stagger up the stairs and into his bed. It was only an hour or so after the fact, as he lay in bed for the night, that he realized he should have just levitated James into bed.


	17. Chapter Seventeen: The Dating Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to give everyone a heads up with how my story is going to progress. This will be a Remus/Tonks story so please trust I have a plan with this whole Jean/Remus thing! Also, soon I'll be doing more time hoping toward Harry's school years. Once I finish laying my foundation that's going to start. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Chapter Seventeen: The Dating Game

Both James and Sirius managed to wake up with massive hangovers from their expeditions the previous evening. James ended up having to go to team practice in his condition while Sirius laid in bed by himself. Remus took Harry to visit the Weasleys that day to give Sirius some peace and so Remus could follow up on a lead in the curse breaking industry about a new rune interpretation. 

The group of men spent the rest of the week in the normal manner. Remus spent most of his time traveling and preparing for the full moon the next week. Sirius spent most of his time down at the pub while James spent time at work and with Harry. 

James was trying to decide whether he should send Harry to a muggle primary school or to home school Harry. With his fourth birthday rapidly approaching, James wanted to make a decision for the coming school year because nursery school had begun enrolling students. He had gotten Jean’s phone number from Remus and spoken to her about the schools in the area, trying to gauge whether it would be worth sending Harry to school or not. 

After sitting down with Minerva, Remus, and Sirius, James finally decided that Harry should attend school and, because they lived so close, that he would send Harry to the same school as Hermione. The group agreed that Harry would do best in a school where he already knew someone as opposed to entering into another new situation with another new group of people. 

Harry seemed extremely pleased with this decision. He told the three men that he liked Hermione and he knew that she would help him meet more friends, too. Harry also seemed to understand that he can’t do any magic at the muggle primary school because that would be breaking the wizard rules. 

The rest of the week went rather normally. Harry was looked after by either James or Remus while Sirius tended to keep more to himself. On the occasions that Sirius was left to watch Harry, James would often come back to the house and find both of them asleep on the floor, toys scattered everywhere. James couldn’t figure out why Sirius tended to avoid babysitting duties, but he never asked either. 

Harry had a few more playdates over the next week. He had the chance to play with Hermione again and his friend Neville came over as well. But today Harry was especially excited because his Nana and some new people were coming over and they were bringing their daughter who’s name he couldn’t quite pronounce. He was a little sad, though, because his Uncle Moony wasn’t staying for tea; he was going to see Hermione’s mom for the evening to talk about his new school. 

Harry bounced on the balls of his feet in the library while he watched the fireplace, waiting. He heard some footsteps behind him, but he refused to turn around. His green eyes bore into the black stone while he waited.

“Harry, why are you hanging out in the library?” Sirius asked, “You’re not trying to use the floo again, are you?”

“No. I’m waiting.”

“Waiting for what?”

“For Nana, Uncle Sir-rus. You know she’s coming.”

“She is?” Sirius asked, confused. 

“Yes! For tea, ‘member?” Harry asked as he crossed his little arms, “Dad told you yesterday.”

“Oh, I must have forgotten,” Sirius said, trailing off, “Anyway, I forgot what I was coming in here to do.”

Harry shrugged, “Books for Uncle Moony?”

“Maybe.”

“You can sit and wait with me if you want. Don’t be lonely!”

Sirius looked into Harry’s little face, at his chubby toddler cheeks, and into his eyes that are so much like Lily’s were and he smiled. He smiled so hard he began laughing, though it sounded more like a bark to Harry. 

“Thank you, Harry. You know, sometimes you remind me so much of Lily.”

“My mama?”

“Yes, Harry, your mama. I miss her so much. She was one of my best friends you know.”

“I don’t remember her.”

“I know you don’t, BK. But we do; your dad, Remus, and I. We can tell you all about her even if it makes us sad sometimes.”

“My dad misses her. He cries sometimes in his room. I seen him.”

“I know,” Sirius said as he put his arm around Harry, “I know.”

As the two sat before the fire place, it lit up with green fire and a tall woman with dark brown hair stepped out and into the library. She looked around the room, clearly impressed by the enormity of the library, before she caught sight of Harry and Sirius sitting on the ottoman in front of her. 

The woman smiled and yelled, “Sirius! You dog! Why haven’t you written to me yet?”

Sirius smiled slightly before saying, “Auntie Dromeda! What’s it been, 4, 5, 6 years?”

“It’s been too long,” She said as she embraced Sirius and the fireplace behind her lit up. 

A young girl with long turquois hair stepped out of the fireplace. She had black boots, fishnet stockings, a short black dress that flared at the bottom, and a black crop jacket on. Harry was examining her outfit when the fireplace behind her lit up again and a comely man stepped out from it. 

The woman turned to the girl and frowned, “Nymphadora, I thought I told you to change into robes. What are you even wearing? That would never pass as muggle clothing!”

“Mom!” The girl called Nymphadora replied, “I told you, I found this outfit in a muggle magazine. They’re fascinating! Plus, dad said I looked fine.”

The woman rolled her eyes and turned back to Sirius, “Please excuse my daughter, she’s going through what I hope is a phase. Dora, come say hello.”

The girl crossed her arms and said, “Hi.”

“Dora!” The woman chastised, “I’m sorry, Sirius. Dora wasn’t happy she had to come. She was hoping to go visit a friend tonight.”

Dora rolled her eyes, “Mom. Please call me Tonks. Nymphadora is too long and I just can’t stand Dora. Please?”

“Fine. Tonks had wanted to visit a friend. But seriously, Sirius, I’m so happy to see you again.”

Sirius embraced Dromeda, “Me too, Dromeda. You always were my favorite aunt! Come on, I’ll introduce you to everyone. But first, this is Harry Potter. He’s James’ son and my godson! I don’t think you had the chance to meet him during the war.”

“No, I didn’t. it’s nice to meet you, Harry. My name is Andromeda. I’m Sirius’ auntie. You can call me Aunt Dromeda, though, if you’d like,” Andromeda said to Harry as she knelt down to look at him, “My, you have beautiful eyes. Has anyone ever told you that?”

“Yes!” Harry said, “Sirius says I have my mama’s eyes but I don’t remember my mama. Hermione and Ginny like my eyes, too. Ginny says they look like a chalk board.”

“I suppose they are pretty close in color,” Andromeda said chuckling, “This is my family, Harry. My husband, Ted, and my daughter, Nymph—sorry, Tonks.”

“Nice to meet you,” Ted said as he grasped Sirius’ hand, “I’ve heard many a story about you! And little Harry, how are you, sport?”

“I’m ok. I’m waiting for my nana!” 

“His nana?” Andromeda asked, confused.

“He means Minerva McGonagall, the—”

“Professor at Hogwarts, yes I remember her! She’s coming this evening?”

“Yes. Hopefully she’s here soon. Poor Harry has been waiting for her for ages.”

“Wonderful! I had some questions about transspecies transfiguration maybe she could answer,” Ted said as he looked up to the ceiling, thinking.

Sirius led the three Tonks’ out of the library to give them a quick tour of Potter Manor. Harry decided to stay in the library to wait for Minerva. He didn’t have to wait long before she appeared in the fireplace. 

Harry jumped up in excitement and ran to give Minerva a tight hug before telling her rapidly about his week and how he met his new friend Hermione and that she was going to come over and visit soon and how his Uncle Remus and Hermione’s mom had become good friends. Minerva listened intently to Harry before giving him the small gift she had brought along with her. Harry quickly unwrapped it to find a child’s wizards chess set. This particular set was designed especially for younger children who were learning to play the game by having specially enchanted pieces that gave helpful tips, advice, and rules to teach the child through active play. Plus, the set was in Harry’s two favorite colors: red and blue. 

Harry thanked Minerva profusely for the gift. He grabbed a hold of her hand and pulled her with him to go show his dad the lovely gift all a while asking her if she would play with him after dinner. Minerva told him she would be delighted to play with him. 

The dinner went smoothly as the group of people caught up with and got to know one another. Harry had the best time talking to Tonks who showed him that she can change her features just by concentrating on it. Minerva watched the two intently and calculatingly. She had a funny feeling that this ability of Tonks’ would cause some ruckus at Hogwarts if the girl were so inclined. 

After dinner the group moved to the living room to continue the festivities. Harry and Minerva played chess while Tonks split her time between watching the game and listening to the adults. 

The adults spent their time talking about recent politics and news. They spent the night talking until, eventually, they noticed little Harry sleeping on the floor and Tonks was nodding off while sitting on the couch. The adults decided to call it a night and James saw the family and Minerva off for the evening before carrying Harry to bed. Sirius decided to head out to the pub until last call just as Remus returned home from his date with Jean. He simply shook his head at James before headed up to bed. 

~ID~

Remus walked into the Full Moon and glanced around the bar. The room was dimly lit but lively decorated. There was local art covering the walls and the bar itself was a piece. The top of the bar was made from reclaimed bowling alley wood and the siding from a 100-year-old barn. The top was thickly sealed and was smooth and glossy. Remus loved the warmness that the bar gave the room. 

Grabbing a seat, he looked at the beer menu while waiting for the bartender to make her way over. She was an attractive blonde with wide hips and lovely, thick thighs. Her blue eyes were deep and dark, her lips pale pink. Remus admired the way she moved as she quickly made her way over to him.

“What can I do you for?” she asked with a smile on her face and her hands on her hips.

Remus blinked wondering if he had misheard her, “I’m sorry, can you repeat that?”

The bartender laughed, “I’m so sorry. I only just realized how that probably came across to you. Let me rephrase myself; what can I get you?”

“Oh!” Remus replied as he ran his fingers through his hair, “Uhm, can you tell me about the Alter Ego?” 

“Sure! Alter Ego is our flagship IPA. It’s a west coast style beer that’s been growing in popularity because of its distinct flavor profile.”

“What’s an IPA?”

“An India Pale Ale. It’s a type of ale brewed with one or more hops. This particular IPA had the hops added during what’s called the whirlpool cycle. When hops are added during this portion of the brewing process, their flavor becomes less bitter and harsh while still leaving a lovely citrus taste. We also added hops after fermentation. Would you like a sample before purchase?”

“Uh, sure?” Remus replied. He was completely overwhelmed. What’s wrong with a simple ale or a Guinness? 

The bartender rushed off to pour Remus a small sample of Alter Ego. Remus gave the beer a go but found it to be exceedingly bitter. He quickly sat it down and shook his head.

“Sorry, that just isn’t my style.”

“Well, maybe I can help make a suggestion?”

Just then the door to the pub opened and Jean entered the room. She quickly looked around before seeing Remus at the bar. She smiled and took the seat next to him. 

“Evening,” Jean said to the bartender.

“Hello! Can I get you something to drink?” the bartender asked.

“Yes, please. Can I get an Alternative Facts?”

The bartender nodded and rushed off to pour a pint of beer for Jean as Jean turned to look at Remus.

“You look lovely this evening,” Remus said as he looked down at Jean, “What kind of beer is Alternative Facts?”

“Thank you,” Jean said, blushing, “It’s a raspberry ale. I know it sounds sweet or fruity but the beer just has a really nice hint of raspberry.”

Remus watched as the bartender dropped off a pubglass full of Alternative Facts and said, “I’ll just take a pint of, uh, do you have a stout?”

“We do. It’s an Irish Dry we’ve dubbed Clydesdale.”

“Perfect.”

Jean and Remus sat in silence while they waited for Remus’ beer to be poured. Jean tapped her fingers on her glass between sips as the bartender dropped off Remus’ beer and stopped at the POS system to open their tab. 

Remus looked over at Jean, “Thanks for coming out with me this evening. I needed a break from research and from James and Sirius.”

Jean smiled, “It’s no trouble. I enjoy your company, Remus.”

Remus took a hasty drink of his beer. He was delightfully surprised at how smooth and flavorful the stout was.

“How have classes been?”

“They’ve been alright. I’m just ready to graduate at this point. Sometimes I feel like I can’t give Hermione the attention she deserves with how often I’m in classes and work. Rick has been so helpful these last few years, honestly.”

“Is Rick around often?”

“He comes by, yeah. He’s a good friend, you know? That’s all he’ll ever be,” Jean took a large swig of her beer as Remus replied.

“Yeah, he seems like a good friend. Are you sure you’ve moved on from him, though?”

“I have. Would I be here if I hadn’t?” 

“Well, I suppose not,” Remus said as he took a sip of his beer, “Hey, why don’t we play one of those games over there?”

“They have games? Oh I love games! What do they have?”

Remus walked over to the game shelf that was situated along the back wall. He picked up a box with gems and knights on the front and carried it back to the bar. 

“This one looks interesting,” Remus said as he sat the box down, “Call to Adventure. I wonder what it’s about. Have you ever heard of it?”

“Oh yes! I love this game! Rick and I play this a lot. It’s like a combination of Dungeons and Dragons, Catan, and Magic the Gathering. You create a story with cards by ‘rolling’ runes to win the card and at the end of the game you count up your points and then tell the story you made. It’s also super strategy based because your end card gives you extra bonus points for gather certain cards or hero/antihero cards during the game.”

“Well, I’ve never heard of either of those games but if you say it’s a good one to play let’s do it.”

Jean pulled the box towards her and opened the lid. She quickly began setting up the game by shuffling cards and dealing some out and putting others in piles. Once it was set up, the couple agreed to let Jean go first to show Remus how the game is played. 

The couple played the game, ignoring everything around them. They each ordered several more beers and ended up playing the game several times through. As it turns out, Remus had quite the knack for playing it and had won three out of the four times they played. The entire time the couple talked about everything from what they hoped to accomplish in life to what their childhood was like.

Remus told Jean all about his family and the vacations they used to take when he was younger. He also told her stories about the pranks the Marauders pulled (without telling her the magical portions of course). 

“And then,” Remus said as he laughed, “James fell over, butt ass naked, in front of McGonagall and said, ‘Oh, sorry Professor, didn’t see you there. We’ll be moving along now!’”

Jean burst out laughing and nearly knocked her beer over in the process.

“Your friends sound hilarious, Remus,” Jean said as she put her glass down and laid her hand on his, “I can’t wait to meet them. Do you three still pull pranks?”

“Yeah,” Remus began as he looked down at their intertwined hands, “We had a prank war a little while back. Ironically, I think Harry won that. He managed to get Sirius to come down stairs naked in front of McGonagall. It was absolutely hysterical.”

“The Professor McGonagall?”

“Yeah, we all stayed pretty close to her after graduation. She was always someone Sirius looked up to when we were kids so it was only natural.”

“How on earth did Harry manage that?”

“Well, he was down in the living room with Minerva and called for Sirius—”

“I’m sorry,” Jean said as she moved within a few inches of Remus, “I couldn’t hear you very well. I think they turned the music up in here.”

“Oh, I was saying, he called Sirius into the living room saying that he was hurt. And of course Sirius came running down just as he was getting into the shower not knowing that Minerva was in the room,” Remus said a bit louder this time.

“I’m sorry, I just, I still can’t hear you very well,” Jean said as she moved closer to Remus, their faces only an inch apart.

“I said—I don’t remember what I just…” Remus trailed off as he looked into Jean’s deep brown eyes. 

He could smell the roses and honey from her shampoo and could see her pink lips were slightly parted. Without thinking, he carefully leaned in and kissed her gently. 

Pulling back, Remus looked into Jeans eyes. He wasn’t able to look long before she had pressed her lips to his again this time harder as they parted under his. He carefully slid his hands onto her waist, gripping her firmly as she twisted her fingers into his golden locks. 

After several moments, Remus came back to his senses and realized they were still sitting at the bar in a local bar in public. 

He pulled back from Jean and looked down into her face, “Jean. Why don’t we get out of here?”

“I like the sound of that,” Jean replied, licking her lips. 

She turned and laid her credit card out on the bar, “I’ve got it this time. You can get the next, ok?”

“Oh, well—”

“No buts,” Jean interrupted. 

Remus sighed as he watched the bartender take Jean’s card and run it. She quickly returned the card with a receipt, which Jean signed. Then the two of them gathered their stuff and walked out the door. 

They walked hand in hand down the lane. As the wind picked up, Jean walked closer to Remus who slipped his arm around her. 

“So does this mean the handsome Remus Lupin is walking me home?” Jean teased Remus.

“I suppose it does. I don’t generally kiss and walk away; I find it rude,” Remus teased back.

Jean laughed, “I’m just up here on the right. The house with the rose bushes there.”

Remus could see the house Jean pointed out. It had several rose bushes out front lining a porch with a white railing and two tall bushes on either side of the stairs. He and Jean walked up the stairs and onto her covered porch. Once they reached the front door Remus yanked her close and kissed her hard on the lips. He felt her yield and then relax as she slipped her tongue into his mouth. 

Jean slipped her arms around Remus’ neck and fisted his hands in his hair, holding his face close to hers as he kissed down her jaw and neck. He nibbled her neck as he kissed his way back up to her lips. 

Remus recaptured her bottom lip as he pushed her against the door. Jean let a moan slip as she tilted her head to be able to kiss Remus better. He kissed her hard and then pulled back and looked into her eyes.

“Wow,” Jean said, “You are a fantastic kisser.”

“Thank you,” Remus said, “But I think the credit should go to you. It takes two, you know. I need to be getting home.”

“Oh, well, if you’re sure,” Jean replied disappointedly, “Did I mention, I can see the moon in your eyes? It’s so beautiful. Well, good night, Remus.”

“Good night, Jean,” Remus replied. 

Jean turned and unlocked her front door before looking back at Remus and smiling. Then she walked inside and closed the door.

Remus turned and walked down the stairs and began walking home. He didn’t live far from Jean, but the walk home was long enough for him to think. 

The moon. How could he be so stupid. She’s a muggle. She would never be able to handle a werewolf on any deep level. A friendship would be hard enough, but a relationship? What on her was he thinking?

Remus continued to chastise himself his entire walk home. As he walked into Potter Manor he could see James and Sirius saying goodbye to the Tonks’ and Minerva. When James looked up at him, he simply shook his head. He didn’t want to talk to them right now. Maybe tomorrow. Tonight, he just wanted to get some sleep.


	18. Chapter Eighteen: It Was Bound To Happen

Chapter Eighteen: It Was Bound To Happen

As the weeks went by Harry was growing more accustomed to his life at Potter Manor with the Marauders. Harry was enjoying life playing with toys and flying his broom. James would often let one or more of his friends come over to play with him but he especially liked when Ron and Ginny would visit or when he visited them. He always had a grand time running around with them and pulling pranks or swimming in the pond or just relaxing in the grass. 

Harry had become increasingly close with Ginny as the days rolled into summer. Harry seemed to trust her more than any of his other friends and Ginny always seemed to know just how to calm Harry down when he needed it. He was also able to see through what Fred and George called, “her little princess act.” Mrs. Weasley had some odd belief that girls just couldn’t cause the sort of mischief that boys could nor could girls play as dirty as the boys. Ginny often enjoyed pulling the princess act after she had completed some prank and, often, she would be absconded by Mrs. Weasley. But only until her father heard about the prank. Once Mr. Weasley was informed, he always seemed to know immediately who was behind the event in question. Sometimes he would let Mrs. Weasley know, if the prank was severe enough, sometimes he simply let it go and chalked it up to kids being kids. 

Harry had been both upset and pleased to hear that Ginny had been disciplined for her role in the spider prank. Mr. Weasley had taken away her dessert privileges for three days. Ginny had simply managed to con her brother, Charlie, into sharing his with her when their parents weren’t looking. Somehow, she had managed to get both of her oldest brother’s wrapped around her finger. 

This wasn’t to say that Ginny was a mischievous or misbehaving child, because she generally wasn’t. In fact, Harry found Ginny to be one of the most thoughtful, kind, and empathetic people he had ever met. But he also understood that she was wicked smart and, often but not always, the mastermind behind some of Fred and George’s more notable pranks. Harry, even in his child mind, often compared Ginny to the fire that so much resembled her hair. She was warm, inviting, and safe, but she was also fast, cunning, and a little, well, fiery. 

For the first time in his life Harry was excited for his upcoming birthday. His dad had told him he was allowed to invite all of the Weasleys, Hermione, Neville, and Tonks! He had carefully helped Remus write the invitations for all of the children and their families and sent them out by both owl and muggle post. So far he had received RSVP’s from the Weasleys and Neville. Remus had told him that was because the muggle postman was a lot slower than the owl post. But because Hermione and her mom were muggles, Harry understood the need to mail their post in the muggle fashion. 

In his childhood innocence, Harry had also asked whether he should invite his cousin, Dudley, to his party. Not wanting to leave anyone he knew out, he told James that he would invite him and be nice because he didn’t want Dudley to feel bad for not getting an invitation. James had carefully explained to him that he shouldn’t feel like he had to invite anyone that he didn’t want and if he really didn’t want to invite Dudley, Dudley would never know Harry even had a party to know that he missed it. knowing this, Harry had still decided to send an invitation over. It was returned unopened. James simply told Harry that Dudley had already had another party to go to that day but that he was sending along a gift in his absence. 

After their last date, Remus had been avoiding spending time alone with Jean. While they had regular playdates with the kids and often called each other on the phone, he had avoided agreeing to or keeping a second date with her. His fears of how a muggle would handle a werewolf were constantly at the forefront of his mind anytime he considered taking her out. 

James and Sirius had tried to discuss this issue with Remus on multiple occasions but it always ended the same way. Remus would make some excuse to have to leave the room and they could never finish it. James and Sirius had always known Remus was a bit odd when it came to dating, and they understood given his condition, but Remus had, in the past, normally been ok with dating a man or a woman. Remus had simply never let a relationship get serious enough for him to have to have an honest commitment to someone. At least, no one they had known of that is. 

~ID~

James looked up from his desk when he heard tapping on the window next to him. He had been in the middle of reading over some expense reports from the brewery he had established in Sussex and was startled to hear an owl this late in the day. He had grown so used to only receiving mail in the morning due to his busy schedule with Portree. 

He stretched his long legs and bent back over the top of his chair, cracking his back in all the right places.

“Oh yeah,” he hissed as his back cracked. 

After sitting back properly, he got up and opened the window to allow the large tawny owl into the room. It hopped gratefully off the sill and onto his desk where it dropped a thick envelope onto his desk. 

“Thanks,” He said to the owl, “You can rest in the owlery if you want. There’s food and water up there.”

The owl hooted at him before flying off to who knows where. James simply shrugged and picked up the letter. Excitement filled him when he saw the acid green ink on the front. He quickly tore the letter open and wondered why it took Dumbledore so long to write back to him. As he wondered this, he began to read.

James,

I am writing to you in response to your last letter. I’m sorry for such a delay, I’ve been extremely busy here at Hogwarts with the year having just ended. The board of governors, the Wizengamot, and myself have been tirelessly working to add some new classes to our class listings. Which, brings me to your letter. 

You had written to me about Remus Lupin and his potentially teaching here as a professor. I have owled Mr. Lupin myself regarding this issue but, to my knowledge, all of my letters have been left unopened. With a few new classes being added to our curriculum, such as Introduction to Healing and Advanced Rune Interpretation: An Intro to Curse Breaking, I am in need of some new professors. Specifically, a Defense Against the Dark Arts and Ancient Runes Professors. I believe that Mr. Lupin would best qualify for our Ancient Runes position as I have already had inquiry into the DADA position by a number of candidates. 

I understand his concerns regarding his ailment. That would not be a problem here as we do still have his room available for use as well as a potion master willing to brew the wolfsbane potion as necessary for him. He would be no potential danger towards the students or staff of Hogwarts. My determination regarding postings is whether the candidate has the necessary credentials and temperament to be a professor here at Hogwarts. 

Please have him contact me regarding the Ancient Runes position if he is so inclined to interview for the post. I have no doubts that he will exceed my expectations with his qualifications. 

If you would still like to discuss Harry and his future, please come to my office at Hogwarts on 17th July

Yours Truly,

Albus P.W.B. Dumbledore

James looked up from the letter and quickly made his way downstairs. On his way he passed by Harry who was coming up the stairs.

“Dad! I’ve been looking for you. Someone couldn’t use the floo!” 

“They what?”

“They couldn’t use the floo! The paper says they couldn’t floo!” Harry said excitedly as he held up the paper.

James took the paper from Harry and said, “Thanks Harry. Where are you off to?”

“My room. Uncle Moony says I needs a nap. But I’m not sleepy!”

“Well, I agree with Uncle Remus. It’s passed noon and definitely nap time. After you wake up we can go for a broom ride, ok?”

Harry’s eyes widened and a huge smile spread across his face, “Yeah! I’ll go sleep fast so I can wake up and fly! ZOOM!”

As Harry said zoom he ran in place for a moment before taking off up the stairs at a run.

“No running in the house!” James called before mumbling, “Why do I even bother?”

Shaking his head, James looked down at the piece of paper in his hand. He didn’t recognize he neat handwriting but he did recognize the signature at the end, Narcissa Malfoy. Curious, he quickly read the note.

Lord Potter,

I humbly request permission to utilize your floo network so we may have a brief conversation regarding your son, Harry. No, my husband will not be in attendance. Please Floo us at your earliest convenience or send your house elf with a return note scheduling a good time. Thank you.

Lady Narcissa Malfoy

James continued walking as he reread the letter, unsure of what to make of it. As he walked and read, he nearly ran over Remus. 

“Prongs, watch where you’re going. Everything ok?” Remus asked as he caught sight of James’ face.

“Yeah,” he replied slowly, his eyes lingering on the note, “I was just coming to find you. I heard from Dumbledore. You’ll want to read his letter.”

Remus, confused, shifted the book he was carrying to his other hand and took the letter from James and read it while James waited. Remus looked up once he’d finished.

“Why would you mail Dumbledore about a job for me without telling me?”

“It was just something I mentioned in a letter to him about Harry. Besides, you would never ask him about positions. Minerva told me that she had mentioned to you that positions were going to open up but you never did anything about it. What gives?”

“I would be a danger to those children,” Remus said roughly, “You know that, James. How could I risk their lives just so I could have a job? That’s irresponsible!”

“Remus you’re being ridiculous! Dumbledore specifically stated that you would be no danger to anyone! He has the shrieking shack still and someone to brew you the potion. I can’t do that here. I’m good at potions but I was never anywhere near the level Lily was; I can’t brew the wolfsbane. Talk to Dumbledore.”

“That’s not the point, James. Why would you go behind my back and apply me for a position that you don’t even know I want!”

“Of course you want this job! You love runes and you know everything there is to know about them. You’ve always wanted to teach and now you have the opportunity. Dumbledore would hire you in a heartbeat and you know it. What’s really up your ass? Huh?”

Remus, red in the face, replied, “What makes you think something, besides you taking to Dumbledore behind my back, is up my ass!”

“The fact that you haven’t gone back out with Jean and refuse to talk about her or your date. Plus the fact that you get that face anytime it’s mentioned!”

“What face?” Remus said, frowning, his eyes sad and his brow furrowed, “I don’t get a face.”

James rolled his eyes, exacerbated, “The face you’re literally making right now. Come on, Moony, we both know you want this job more than anything and you aren’t actually this upset I talked to Dumbledore. You’re upset about something to do with Jean and I’m betting it has to do with your furry problem, doesn’t it? You stopped seeing her 2 days before the full moon!”

“Of course I stopped seeing her so close to the full moon! As if I need the constant reminder of the Lunar cycle to the fact that I’m a monster that no muggle or person should ever have to coexist with. It’s bad enough that I live here with Harry in the house. What if I bit him, too?!”

“Oh so it’s because she’s a muggle, too? I never would have pegged you for dumping someone for such stupid reasons, Remus. Or maybe I have since you broke up with McKinnon for the same reason! And Prewitt! And—”

“Stuff it! I don’t need a blow by blow of my failed relationships, James,” Remus interrupted, his eyes shining darkly. 

James’ eyes flashed, “Well maybe your relationships wouldn’t fail if you didn’t force them to! You mope around because you can’t, or more realistically won’t, have Jean or Mary or Fabian or anyone but it’s because you won’t let yourself! Jean is a wonderful person and you two get along extremely well, Remus!”

“You know nothing about this!” Remus yelled as he crumpled Dumbledore’s letter in his hands, vibrating with rage, “You know nothing about being a werewolf mister James fucking perfect Potter.”

“No, I don’t know what it’s like to be a werewolf. But I do know that it’s not something that should stop you from having a relationship! The right person—” 

“There is no right person!” Remus roared as he threw the book he had been clutching in his hands towards James. 

James quickly ducked out of the way of the flying book and stared at Remus, his eyes hard and cold. Remus’ face was twisted into a snarl, his teeth bared and his eyes angry as he looked back at James. 

“You need to calm the fuck down,” James said as calmly as he could muster. 

“No, I really don’t. I’ll be back later,” Remus replied as he grabbed his coat and walked out of the house. 

James stared at the place where Remus had been standing just moments previously before turning at the sound on the stairs. He looked at Sirius as he stepped around the corner.

“What was all the yelling for?” Sirius asked, his eyes searching the room.

“Remus and his furry problem,” James snapped, “Dumbledore is willing to hire him for a position at Hogwarts and Remus went off the wall because I had owled Dumbledore about it a few weeks ago. What he’s really upset about is his being a werewolf. Now he’s left and I don’t know where he went nor do I really care right now.”

“Why did you owl Dumbledore about a posting for Remus?” Sirius asked.

“Would Remus have done it?”

“No, but that doesn’t explain why you did.”

“Well, I was owling him anyway about Harry and the prophecy. I thought of it while writing because Remus had mentioned the research he was doing and that he hadn’t been able to find a job lately. I thought I was helping.”

“Well, I’m sure you thought you were helping but did it ever occur to you that Remus would want to get a job on his own and by his merits, not yours?” Sirius asked and then frowned, “Fuck. When did I become the reasonable thinking one? Clearly I need to get out more.”

“You feeling ok, Padfoot? That did not sound like you at all. But, maybe you’re right. When he gets back I’ll apologize to him I suppose.” 

“You’d better because I refuse to live in a house where I’m not the biggest drama queen!” Sirius said as he raised his face towards the ceiling and closed his eyes dramatically.

James rolled his eyes, “I don’t think I can keep living with you if you’re going to be that dramatic.”

“Hey, I had to hold in my dramatics for three years, Prongs! Three! I deserve some dramaticism. And chocolate.”

“You can’t eat chocolate. You’re a dog, remember? Also, it was more like two years, but whatever.”

Sirius pouted, “You mean if I eat chocolate in my human form I’ll die?!”

“Dunno. Sounds logical to me.”

Sirius fell to his knees and held up his arms, “Nooo! The horror! The horror!!” 

“Oh my god just go eat chocolate! I need to floo your cousin.”

“Andie? Why?”

“No, the other one. Narcissa.”

“What the hell does she want?”

“I don’t know. She sent a note via floo asking me to floo back. I didn’t even know people not on my approved list could do that. I’ll have to talk to Gus and Cirri about strengthening our limitations with floo.”

“I wonder what Cissy wants. Nothing good, I’m sure, considering her pompous dirtbag of a husband.”

“Maybe she wants to make amends?”

“Or get with another pureblood who’s now technically on the market, more likely. I bet old Lucius is a cod in bed.”

James frowned and paled, “I really didn’t need that image, thanks. And in any case, I’m not ‘on the market’. You know Lily was my one and only.”

Sirius shrugged, “Yeah, I know. But she also wouldn’t have wanted you to be alone forever, either. Lily-love would have wanted the best for you and Harry and nothing else.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m just…I’m not ready. I’m going to go floo Narcissa.”

“Cool. I’m going to find some chocolate. Maybe a beer. Or a chocolate beer. Yum!” 

James watched as Sirius walked off with a bounce in his step at the prospect of potentially finding a chocolate beer somewhere in the fridge. He smiled and shook his head, there definitely wasn’t any chocolate beer left because Remus probably polished off the last bottle. 

As he made his way to the library James contemplated what in the world Narcissa Malfoy could want from him. He highly doubted it had anything to do with him being a bachelor. Even the thought of himself being a bachelor made him cringe. He glanced down at the wedding band he still wore, the shine of the gold still prominent even after the last few years. He rubbed his thumb along the band as he walked into the library and over to the fireplace. He quickly grabbed a pinch of green powder and threw it onto the logs before saying his destination. Then he popped his head into the fire and watched the world spin. 

~ID~

Remus shoved his hands into his pockets as he walked down the lane and away from Potter Manor. He was fuming; he was so angry he was surprised that there wasn’t any actual steam coming from his ears. Where was James coming from thinking it was appropriate for him to send a letter to Dumbledore about employment for himself? Surely James didn’t think he was that incompetent, did he?

As he walked he occasionally kicked at stones that lay in his path. He listened to each of them clatter away from him as he went wherever his feet took him. As the sun began setting, everything around him was bathed in a soft golden hue. Remus couldn’t help but to admire the colors around him while he walked. The golden tone bounced off of the trees around him as he watched it peek in and out of the gaps between the leaves. Sometimes he wished he were more artistically inclined like Sirius because then maybe he could have drawn or painted the beautiful scene and colors. He quickly shook his head at this thought, the most he could draw were some really crude stick figures. You’d be lucky if you could figure out they were stick figures, anyway. 

Suddenly, Remus became very aware that he recognized the road he was on. He looked around quickly, glancing at the fronts of houses in the quite suburban neighborhood before he found the one he recognized. He never realized that he was walking this direction. Having only been there once, Remus didn’t realize that he even remembered the way there. 

He watched as the door to the house opened and Jean stepped out with a watering can, a white and yellow sunhat sat on top of her head, complimenting the dark browns and reds that made up the coloring of her lightly curled hair. She bent over her rose bushes and watered them as she smelled a few of the blossoms there. They were bright orange; Remus couldn’t remember ever seeing an orange rose let alone one that beautiful. 

He watched as she closed her eyes, taking in the scent, before she turned to the other bush and watered that one, too. He was so engrossed in watching her, that he didn’t notice himself walking toward her house and up the paved driveway. He was about six feet away when she spoke. 

“Good evening, Remus.”

Remus blushed and ran his fingers through his hair, “Hello, Jean. Lovely evening, eh?”

She turned and smiled at him, he couldn’t help but notice that she had such a beautiful smile, “I thought so. My roses here needed a little love. They’re not enjoying the summer heat.”

Remus reached behind Jean and carefully pulled a rose off the bush. Unbeknown to Jean, Remus did use a severing charm to remove the flower. 

He carefully put the flower in her hair so it sat behind her ear, “Well, I think they’re beautiful. I’ve never seen orange roses.”

“They’re my favorite,” Jean said, smiling, “They’re a special species. You can buy all sorts of colored roses but the orange ones are the best.”

“I’m sorry I’ve been distant these last few weeks.”

“I was wondering how long it would take you to come apologize to me. What’s been going on?”

“It’s just…something I had to figure out on my own. I’m not really the relationship type, Jean. I’m—broken.”

“That makes two of us,” Jean said quietly as she looked down at Remus’ hand. It had, without his intentions, clasped Jeans’ hand. She carefully rubbed her thumb along the side of his hand as she looked up into his eyes. 

As he looked into her dark brown eyes, Remus leaned down and kissed her. She tasted like cooked marshmallow and chocolate. Remus couldn’t help but to lick her lips, savoring the delicious combination of flavors. Jean moaned and parted her lips for him, pushing herself closer to him and placing a hand on his chest. He held her waist tightly, his strong arm locking her into place as he feasted on her delicious mouth. 

“Jean! Who’s this wanker?!” 

Remus and Jean broke apart suddenly and looked around for the person yelling at them. Remus caught sight of an average sized man with salt and pepper hair wearing jeans and a T-shirt that had something to do with a thing called Doctor Who, whatever that was. Jean immediately began blushing and untangled herself from Remus.

“Rick. What are you doing here?”

“Never mind that, who’s this wanker and why is he all over you? Should I phone the police?”

Jean frowned, “No. This is Remus. I’ve told you about him.”

Rick stiffened and looked Remus up and down before continuing slowly, “Yes. The gentleman who’s been ignoring you.”

“He hasn’t been ignoring me, Rick. And he came to apologize to me. I think he did so quite well if you ask me.”

“Jean, are you serious? He’s been jerking you around for weeks. What do you see in him?”

“Come off it, you have no say in who I do and don’t date.”

“Of course I do! I’m your best friend.”

“Right. That doesn’t necessarily give you a say in whom I date!” Jean said sharply, “We’ve discussed this.”

This caused Rick to go red in the face, “Jean, really—” 

“Enough,” Jean snapped as she turned back to Remus, “I’ll phone you later, ok? Let me deal with Rick.” 

“Sure,” Remus said quietly as he assessed the situation carefully. Remus gave Jean a quick peck on the lips before turning on his heel and walking away. As he turned, he caught a glimpse of Ricks face. Written all over him was clearly hurt and longing. As he made his way home Remus thought over the entire encounter and came to a conclusion. One thing was clear to him, Rick absolutely did have feelings for Jean. So, what did this mean for Remus?


	19. Chapter Nineteen: Speculations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm going to do here what I normally do on Fanfiction.net when I get reviews which is to respond to them! Thanks for reviewing!
> 
> xXQueenofDragonsXx: You'll just have to keep reading to see if you're right! ;) Kmurray2024: Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. As for how I'm writing Harry; yes, at this point in the story he's 3 years old. I'm basing him off of my own daughter and what she was like when she was 3. Trust me, this is extremely accurate to how she spoke, acted, and played at that age. Not all children mature and develop at the same pace at that age so I had to have a bouncing point there! Thanks for reading! And I'm glad you enjoyed my inclusion of Hermione.

Chapter Nineteen: Speculations

Jean watched as Remus walked down the lane. She frowned at the sight of him; his shoulders hunched over, his head down, the quickness in his steps as he hurried away. The golden-haired man she had gotten to know over the last few weeks, shunned away because she was never able to keep the balance in her life. Why did this always happen?

She turned quickly, anger flashing in her eyes as they caught sight of Rick in the driveway. She could see the shame written all over his face. His eyes were sad as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. She could see the other balled up in the pocket of his jeans. She softened a little at the sight of him. She couldn’t help herself. This was Rick! Her Rick—no, her friend Rick. She had moved on, Jean reminded herself, she needed to stay strong in this. 

“What do you want, Rick? You interrupted quite an interesting moment,” Jean asked.

“Well, I just, I came over to check up on you, I guess. I hadn’t heard from you in a few days and you skipped clinicals yesterday—”

“Hermione was ill; she had a belly ache so I kept her home.”

“Oh, well, that makes sense,” Rick replied.

They stood there for a few moments, each pointedly not looking at the other. Rick looked around the garden. He had always admired her skill with plants; he always thought Jean grew the most beautiful flowers. Rick chanced a glance at Jean and found her pointedly looking at the cloudless sky. She looked so beautiful standing there. Her dark brown hair fell in loose rings down her back, her small nose, and the long lashes on her eyes. Soon enough he found himself staring and forced himself to look away and back at something else. 

“Jean, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt you and Remus.”

Jean sighed and looked at Rick. His heart about stopped when he caught sight of those dark eyes.

“It’s ok,” She replied as she twisted her hands on her watering can, “He came by to talk to me about something but he never got to it.”

“I’m sorry. I know it’s been hard for you since—since Greg. I was just worried about you and then I saw you kissing him after he’s been giving you the cold shoulder lately. I didn’t know what to think. You two look good together. He’s…handsome.”

“Yes, he is,” Jean said as she looked to the ground.

“Have you heard from him lately?”

Jean looked back at the house and up to a window with the blinds closed, “No. I don’t expect to anymore. He’ll never know what he’s missing.”

Rick stepped forward and covered Jeans hands with his own. He could feel the hard-plastic watering container under them, “You deserve better. You know that. You and Hermione, you guys deserve the best. I love you both more than anything, you know that.”

Jean looked back at him, her eyes sad, “Yeah, we know. She misses having you around you know. It’s been hard not having you around as much anymore. We both miss you.”

“I miss you guys too. I’ve been giving you your space. You’ve been dating that guy and it’s been hard—” Rick caught himself before he finished his sentence. He closed his mouth and looked back at the rose bushes. Orange was such a beautiful color.

“What’s been hard?” Jean asked, her eyes confused and curious.

“Just missing my best friend. That’s all,” Rick lied.

Jean sighed and leaned into him, hugging him close, “We miss you. I miss you.”

“I know. But you need time to date and see Remus or whomever is next. I don’t know. Sorry, I’m just so all over the place right now.”

“Rick,” Jean said as she looked up at him, “Why do you think I need space from you? You’re my best friend?”

Because I needed space to breathe, “Because I can’t imagine it’s easy to date with your guy best friend hanging around,” he replied with a laugh. 

“Damnit, Rick. I’m tired of these games! You’re the one who dated Ally first. And here I thought—I thought…” Jean trailed off as she looked away from Rick.

Rick, his brow furrowed, replied, “Thought what, Jean?”

Jean smiled sadly, “Nothing. Do you want to come inside for a cup of tea? I can put the kettle on? Catch up, you know?”

“Only if you have spearmint green tea,” Rick said as he smiled at Jean.

“I think I can rustle some up. Come on in, you know where everything is.”

Rick followed Jean into the little house. As he walked by the bushes, he reached his hand out and ran his fingers along the petals of one of the orange roses and smiled. He had really missed Jean.

~ID~

“Hello? Narcissa?” James called out from the floo, “Anyone home?”

James sat and listened for a moment before he heard quick footsteps approaching. He could tell by the clack of the heels that it was most likely Narcissa making her way towards the fireplace. He watched as a tall blonde woman wearing dark blue robes swaggered into his sight. He sighed as he thought about what someone like her could possibly want. 

Narcissa knelt down so she could be more face to face with James, “Lord Potter. Thank you for flooing me so quickly. I have a few important matters to discuss with you.”

“Yeah, it wasn’t a problem. I had some free time today. What’s up?”

Narcissa frowned at James’ casual attitude but continued, “I wanted to discuss my son, Draco, and Lord Black with you if you would be so inclined.” 

“What about Sirius?” James asked confusedly, “He’s here with me, I could have him join us if you wanted.”

“Yes, well, I don’t think that’s necessary, Lord Potter. I was hoping to discuss the recent passing of his mother with you. It is my understanding that Lord Black has not been informed because the Ministry has been unable to contact him.”

“Walburga died? Of what?”

“Dragon Pox. At her age her death was quick. She passed in the family home. With my sister in Azkaban, I am the only other remaining Black so the task of informing Lady Black’s only son was left on my shoulders. Please extend my condolences. I do hope he informs me of when the services will take place.”

James snorted, “I highly doubt Sirius will hold services for that old bat. He hates her. But I’ll pass along your message none the less. Have you contacted your other sister? I’m sure Andromeda would like to know. Did you need anything else from me? If not, I did have plans to go flying with my son and I’m sure he’s going to be waking up soon.”

Her eyes sad, Narcissa continued, “Andromeda was removed from the family tree a decade ago. So, no. However, your son leads me perfectly into my next topic. You see, Lord Potter, I have a son who is the same age as your boy. Lucius has only allowed Draco to play with children who belong to families of the other sacred 28 but I have convinced him to allow Draco to associate with those pure-blood families who were erroneously omitted from the Pure-Blood Directory’s sacred 28 list. I have not been overly pleased with the parentage of those other children though a few of the children have been lovely playmates for my Draco. Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini in particular are bright and interesting children. 

“So, I had a thought. I love my husband and don’t wish to go against his wishes but I thought, your family should have been included in that list, I’ve researched your family history extensively over the last few weeks. And, even though he is a half-blood, your son does technically constitute as an offspring from a pure-blood family. I was hoping you may be willing to allow our sons to have a playdate. Maybe tomorrow if possible. Lucius will be at the Ministry all day and if Draco and Harry have an interest in remaining friends, I know Lucius would never force them apart.”

“You want to schedule a play date? I don’t know if I want Harry to be friends with someone who takes the sacred 28 that seriously,” James said cautiously. 

“I understand that. While I was raised to believe that the pure blood is best, I want Draco to make those decisions on his own. I’m concerned that if I allow Lucius to force these beliefs on him without any kind of outside influence that Draco won’t be able to make his own opinions someday. And since you and Harry are technically part of the sacred 28, I think this is the best way to open Draco’s world view. I mean, you married a muggle born.”

James pursed his lips, “Then why not have him meet the Weasley children, too, then?”

Narcissa frowned. Somehow, she looked lovely even doing that, “Well, I think the Weasley’s may be a bit of a far stretch for what I’m trying to accomplish. Even if I took Draco to meet those children, Lucius would never allow him to return.”

“But they’re technically part of the sacred 28 as well.”

“Yes, that’s true. Whomever wrote the book did technically include them. But they also included a notation about their traitorous beliefs regarding blood status. However, if the Weasley children just so happened to be at your house during the playdate, well, that just couldn’t have been foreseen,” Narcissa stated with a knowing look.

James thought for a moment. Would it really be such a bad thing for Harry to have another friend? With a good influence, any child can overcome their parent’s preconceived notions. 

“Let me discuss it with Sirius. He knows you best and I think his input will give me a good idea of what to do with all of this.”

Narcissa thought and then nodded, “That seems fair. Please send a note with your house elf to me, and only me, once you’ve reached a decision. I look forward to hearing from you.”

“Ok. Have a nice one.”

James quickly pulled his head out of the fire and braced himself on the floor. His head always spun horribly after using the floo in this way. Once the room stopped spinning he carefully stood up and headed to the kitchen hoping to find Sirius still there. 

He walked into the kitchen and saw Gus and Cirri preparing that evening’s dinner.

“Hey guys, did you see where Sirius got off to?”

Cirri looked up at James and smiled, “He is going to the living room to watch the TV. I is hoping you is hungry for dinner Master James. We is making steak and kidney pie.” 

“That sounds awesome Cirri. Thank you.”

James made his way to the living room and burst out laughing. Sirius was sprawled out on an arm chair, one of his legs over the arm, his beer spilling on the floor as it tipped out of his hand. He was snoring so loudly, James marveled at how much like a dog his best friend was. 

He thought for a moment before pointing his wand at his feet and whispering, “quietus,” and creeping silently over to where Sirius was sitting. He thought for another moment, carefully considering his options. Then, smiling, he knew exactly what he should do.

After several minutes of complicated transfiguration, James smiled down at his work. James had transformed his friend Sirius into Cici. Sirius’ locks of black hair now reached down to his plump breasts in curly ringlets. His face, devoid of his scruff, now had make up to compliment his feminine features. James had a way with his wand when it came to contouring apparently as Sirius had never looked more beautiful. He had also transfigured her lips so that they were plumper and fuller. Finally, James had made Sirius’ body more effeminate by giving her hips. Honestly, he didn’t have to do much to Sirius’ body, he was already rather effeminate. 

His clothes were what James was the proudest of. He had transfigured Sirius’ sweats into a lovely, low cut, cardigan sweater in a lovely cream color that complimented Sirius’ skin tone and a pair of very shapely jeans. He had also changed Sirius’ shoes to a pair of wedge sandals and gave Sirius a lovely french pedicure. 

Smiling to himself, he silently summoned his camera and snapped a few photos of Sirius and then banishing the camera again, hiding it in a safe place in the house. He then pointed his wand at his throat and said, “Sonorus.”

“Hey sexy, come here often?” James said using his amplified voice. 

Sirius woke with a start, snorting as his eyes sprung open. He quickly sat up and yawned, stretching and arching his back, his breasts heaving in the air. The unusual weight on his chest caught his notice and he glanced down confusedly. Then he smiled and reached up and grabbed on of the breasts with his hand and jumped when he felt his hand squeeze it. 

As he absentmindedly played with his new appendages, Sirius said, “I don’t know what happened, but I really like these.” 

James started laughing as he watched Sirius playing with his boobs, “You’re not even the least bit upset?”

“Eh. Wait. Did you give me the other parts?” Sirius asked excitedly as he pulled at the waistband of his jeans.

James looked at him, wide eyed, “I mean, I didn’t really think about that.”

“Well that’s disappointing,” Sirius said as he looked into his pants, “But, honestly, I never thought I could look more gorgeous. You’ve outdone yourself, Prongs!”

Sirius gave James a sexy pose, pulling down the top of his sweater so James could glimpse a part of his perky breasts. 

James simply held up his wand and removed the breasts but left the hair, make up, and clothes, “knock it off you ponce. I came to talk to you but first you need to clean up the beer you spilled on my floor.”

Sirius looked at the floor next to him where a dark brown stain had formed where his beer had spilled and said, “Sure thing Prongs. Cirri! Can you come here?”

“That’s not what I meant,” James said, frowning as Cirri came into the living room.

“What is you needing Master Sirius?”

“You call him master?” James asked Cirri.

“Of course she does! Fee always told her I was family. Right Cirri?”

“This is true Masters James and Sirius. What is you needing?”

James rolled his eyes as Sirius flashed Cirri a large grin, “Cirri can you help get rid of this stain on the floor?”

“I can!” Cirri said before snapping her fingers. The stain suddenly disappeared off the floor at her snap and Cirri left the room.

“Thanks Cirri!” Sirius yelled as she left.

“It is not being a problem!” Cirri called back. 

Sirius picked up his wand and transfigured most of himself back. He decided to keep the hair and simply shortened it some before conjuring a hair tie and pulling it back into a low ponytail. 

“I’ve been meaning to change up my look! I think this looks pretty good; kind of badass if you ask me. It’d look really good with my leather jacket while I ride my motorcycle. So, what did you need?”

“I wanted to ask your opinion on your cousin Narcissa.”

“Malfoy? I haven’t talked to her since before she married that wanker she calls a husband. Why?”

“She wants to schedule a playdate for her son, Draco, and Harry. She said she’s worried Draco will pick up too much of his dad’s racism if she only lets Draco play with other children from the sacred 28.”

“I mean, she’s not wrong,” Sirius said, “he’d turn into a wanker like his father. Did she say what brought this on?”

“She’d been researching my family line to make sure I would qualify under Lucius’ requirements. She seemed to believe Harry would qualify even though he’s half-blood. She described it as some sort of loophole. I just don’t know if I want him to have Lucius’ beliefs rub off on him.”

Sirius thought for a moment before replying, “Well, if you think of it that way, and your parents had thought the same way, we wouldn’t have been friends.”

James frowned, “What do you mean?”

“Well, I came from a family worse than this Draco does. You remember my mother dearest and her beliefs about half-bloods and muggle borns. If Fee and Monty thought the same way you’re looking at this, they never would have let us continue to be friends. I could have rubbed off my mother’s belief of Toujours Pur on you and corrupted you.”

“I guess you’re right,” James said as he ran his fingers through his hair, “Well, what do you think of Narcissa? Do you think this is some kind of ploy?”

“Nah. Cissa was always a good person. A little spoiled and a bit stuck up, but she’s an honest and relatively genuine person.”

“Well, then I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try one playdate. If Harry decides he doesn’t like this Draco, we don’t have to have another, right?”

“I don’t see why that would be a problem. It sounds like that’s Cissa’s plan, too.”

“Yeah,” James said before he looked up, remembering something, “Right. She had a message for you.”

“Oh yeah? What did ol’ Cissa want from me?”

“It’s good and bad news. Walburga died.”

“So the old bat bit the dust, huh? Can’t say I’m upset. What took her down? It deserves a prize.” 

“Dragon Pox apparently.”   
“Yeah, well, the old bat deserved that.”

“She wanted to know when you’re going to host a funeral.”

Sirius let out a bark like laugh, “If she wants my mother to have a funeral, she’s welcome to host it herself. I won’t be lifting a finger to help that old bag.” 

James shrugged, “Whatever you want, padfoot. Anyway, I need to owl Dumbledore back. You good?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Prongs.”

James nodded before sitting down and quickly writing a letter to Dumbledore agreeing to speak to him this evening about Harry and the prophecy. He took it out to the owlery and sent it off to him before headed back to the house. 

Once Harry woke up, he and James spent the afternoon flying around on their brooms on the quidditch pitch. Harry had a blast watching James do some complicated flying tricks and then fell off his broom trying to do a loop in the air. He wasn’t flying too high, so he wasn’t injured but James coddled him all the same. 

While flying, James received a response from Dumbledore agreeing to meet this evening in his office. The letter indicated that they had much to discuss. 

James made sure Harry was fed and bathed before putting him to bed for the evening. Once he was sure Harry was down for the evening, he placed a sensory charm on his room so he would know if Harry woke up at any point during the evening. He smiled as he headed down to the fireplace and flooed to Dumbledore’s office.

~ID~

Remus sighed as Potter Manor grew before him. He had been gone for several hours now and the prospect of having to go home and face James again after his outburst was daunting. He hadn’t meant to blow up at something so trivial. He was only slightly miffed that James had owled Dumbledore; he felt like that was something he needed to do himself if he deserved the job. When it got this close to the full moon he was always on edge. His emotions ran high and his nerves were on edge. 

He looked at the front door and sighed before going inside. He carefully pushed open the door and walked into the entrance hall before looking around the room. He listened carefully and followed the soft whispers of James’ voice. 

James’ voice pulled him into the library where he watched James stick his face into the floo. Remus sighed and grabbed a seat and a book. Who knew how long this call would take. 

~ID~

James stepped out of the fireplace and into Dumbledore’s office. He carefully brushed the soot off of him and used a cleansing charm on himself to remove what he couldn’t brush off. 

He looked up at the massive bookshelves around him until he caught sight of Dumbledore sitting at his desk writing something. 

“Good evening, Professor.”

Dumbledore looked up and smiled, “Good evening, James. And, please, you are no longer my student; you may feel free to call me Albus.”

“Alright. Albus, then.”

“Have a seat,” Dumbledore said as he indicated the chairs in front of him as he smiled. 

James took a seat in front of Dumbledore and looked at him patiently.

“How have you been these last few months, James?”

“Good. Can we skip the formalities, Albus? I’d like to discuss Harry and the prophecy so I can get home. I have practice early tomorrow morning.”

“Of course. What would you like to know?”

“Is he gone?”

Dumbledore looked at James seriously, his blue eyes sad, “I think you know the answer to that, James.”

James sighed, “That’s what I was afraid you would say. Does this mean that Harry will have to face him again?”

“I believe so. But I can only make educated guesses. Prophecies are notoriously ambiguous and unclear.”

“How are we going to prepare for that? He’s just a child, Albus. How do I train him to kill the worst evil our world has ever seen? How do I tell him that he has to kill or be killed? That there’s no hiding from this?”

“I wouldn’t worry about telling him that now. He’s only three, James. That can wait until he’s older, until he can understand what the prophecy means for him. As for training him; for now, we can focus on training his mind and giving him the foundation he needs to succeed when he begins Hogwarts. Give him a normal childhood, James.”

“A normal childhood? How can he ever have a normal childhood? They call him The Boy Who Lived, Albus. He’s more famous than he realizes and some day he’ll be even more famous because he has to defeat Voldemort. He needs training and as much as I hate to say it, it needs to happen sooner than later. Now, if possible. 

“Maybe I can get a variance from the Ministry to teach him basic, elemental wandless magic at home and, eventually, defense and advanced spells. He should learn how to defend himself without magic, too. If he were to be captured by death eaters and lose his wand? They’d kill him, Albus. Without hesitation. He would have no line of defense!”

“James, I think you’re getting ahead of yourself. What Harry needs—” 

“No offense, Albus, but I don’t think you know what Harry needs. As you just said, you can only speculate and make educated guesses. We need to plan for the worst case scenario here.” 

Dumbledore frowned at James, “I cannot force you to follow my advice, James, but I can still give it. I have been working these last two years to gather information about Voldemort’s past. About his childhood, school years, and after school life before he rechristened himself as Lord Voldemort. I think there’s more information that we don’t know that would make this situation clearer.”

“What do you know that you aren’t telling me, Albus?” James said, his eyes darkening.

“At this time I don’t know anything, James, I merely have uncorroborated suspicions.”

“And what are those suspicions?” James spat, “I deserve to know. Harry deserves for us to have the whole picture.”

Dumbledore sighed, stood up, and walked to a cabinet near his desk. He reached in and pulled out a stone basin with runes around the edge of the bowl and brought it back to his desk and sat it down before taking his seat. 

“Do you know what this is, James?”

“No.”

“It’s a pensieve. It allows one to remove their memories, or copies of their memories, and replay them. I have in here two memories I think are important pieces to the Voldemort puzzle. One is my memory from when Voldemort was a child, before he began Hogwarts. The other is a memory from a house elf named Hokey. She was the house elf to one of Helga Hufflepuff’s last remaining descendants, Hepzibah Smith. If you would be inclined, I can show you these two memories.”

Curious, James stood up and looked at the pensieve, “And what do these memories have to do with the prophecy?” 

“To be honest, I’m not sure yet. I have speculations, of course, but nothing I can confirm yet.”

James looked up into Dumbledore’s face, “And those speculations?”

“I believe Voldemort may have found a way to become immortal, in a sense of the word. I believe he can be defeated, but it will be difficult.”

“How do you think he did it?”

“I am honestly not sure. I have been researching the ways but I have not come across any that have been successful for previous witches and wizards yet. There are soul transfer potions, necromancy of course, unicorn blood, a philosopher’s stone, and horcruxes. Horcruxes being objects magically enhanced to house portions of a person’s severed soul. None of these areas of magic would render Voldemort truly immortal but, rather, extend his natural life until such a point that the magic was destroyed or counteracted. 

“However, at this time, I cannot say for certain which option Voldemort would have gone. Creating a philosopher’s stone is nearly impossible; only one wizard in history has been able to manufacture such a creation and it is currently being kept safe in a secret, undisclosed location by my good friend, Nicolas Flamel. 

“As for soul transfer potions and horcruxes; the potion was never perfected by the creator. While it was able to temporarily transfer the drinker’s soul into another body, it would eventually transfer back. And if the drinker’s body had been destroyed, the soul would dissipate, rendering the drinker dead. Similar occurred with the creator of the horcrux. He was able to split and remove a portion of his soul and encase it within an object, but eventually that object would combust and destroy that portion of the soul and thus rendering destroying the essential purpose of the ritual. 

“As we know unicorn blood is not an exact science either. The drinker is merely able to cling to the life they have and cannot regenerate or improve upon their current condition. It merely sustains a drinker rather than repairing or enhancing. And necromancy would require another wizard of Voldemort’s skill to resurrect him. I don’t know that any wizards capable outside of myself exist. Whether he could have figured out a way to use necromancy to his benefit I cannot know.

“As you can see, all I have is speculation at this point. Hence my research into Voldemort’s past. My hope is to find some clue or clues that tell me the story of what he decided to do, what line of magic he learned and improved upon.”

“Wow,” James said shocked, “Wow. You think it’s possible he could be using any one of those ideas? I mean, that he could have dabbled in and improved upon or created any of those options is…unthinkable.”

Dumbledore nodded his agreement, “Do you understand my hesitation to divulge this information to others before I have been able to come to a solid conclusion? These speculations are so unthinkable that no one would believe them out of sheer fear of the unknown, of Voldemort’s potential capabilities. It would cause panic among the citizens of Magical Brittan.”

“And you think these memories you found give you some clues?”

“I think they are smaller pieces of a large, unclear puzzle, yes.”

James looked back at the pensieve and then back at Dumbledore, “Let’s have a look then.”

Dumbledore smiled and swirled the liquid in the pensieve with his wand, “After you, James.”

James frowned and took a deep breath before bending over the pensieve and falling into Dumbledore’s memory.


	20. Chapter Twenty: Knowledge is Power

Chapter Twenty: Knowledge Is Power

James watched the memories silently while Dumbledore stood next to him. He watched as young Voldemort learned about Hogwarts and demanded Dumbledore give him a demonstration. He watched, and gasped, as the younger Dumbledore lit Voldemort’s dresser on fire and Voldemort dumped his box of trophies onto the bed. 

He watched in confusion as young Voldemort showed up at Hepzibah Smith’s house and as she showed him her prize treasures: the locket of Slytherin and Hufflepuff’s cup. 

As they came back out of the pensieve, James was more confused than ever as to what Dumbledore thought was important about these particular memories. To him, they seemed like small snippets of days in the life of Tom Riddle. Sure, the first one showed he was a sociopath, but that was something they already knew. 

Dumbledore sat back in his chair and looked at James over the tips of his fingers, “What did you think?”

“To be honest, I’m not sure why those memories are important. We already know Voldemort’s a sociopath.”

Dumbledore smiled at James, “I’m afraid I must admit that I, too, am unsure where in the puzzle these two particular pieces fit. I do know, however, that shortly after Lord Voldemort visited Ms. Hepzibah Smith she died and her two prized possessions, the Cup of Hufflepuff and Slytherin’s Locket, disappeared.”

James sat up, suddenly intrigued and confused, “They disappeared? Has anyone seen them since? Wait, what did she die of?”

“That is, as they would say, the million-galleon question. Those particular treasures have not been seen since Ms. Smith showed them to Lord Voldemort. Mr. Borgin tried tirelessly to obtain those particular objects from Ms. Smith but never succeeded. They have since been lost to time. As for Hepzibah Smith, she was found, dead, two days after her encounter with young Voldemort. It seems that her house elf, Hokey, in her old age, mixed up the sugar and rat poison one evening while making her mistress a cup of tea. She was, of course, disciplined by the Ministry and has subsequently passed. With some difficult spell work, I was able to break the memory enchantments placed on Hokey and I was able to retrieve this memory.”

“Memory enchantments?”

“Yes. Someone, Lord Voldemort I suspect, placed strong memory altering charms upon Hokey the house elf so that she wouldn’t remember, or, more accurately, would remember incorrectly the events of the day her mistress passed.”

“But why? What purpose does changing the memories of a house elf serve Voldemort?”

“I have no idea. I speculate that he is the one who stole Hepzibah Smith’s treasures. Why, I cannot say at this time.”

“So, what’s important your memory?”

“I honestly have no idea,” Dumbledore said smiling emptily, “Perhaps because it shows that, even as a young child, he enjoyed torturing others.”

“Well, fat lot of good this does to help us prepare for him to ever come back. Have you started researching into those immortality possibilities? Maybe if we knew more about them this would all make more sense.”

“I have,” Dumbledore said as he stood up and strode to one of his many book shelves. 

Dumbledore raised his wand and tapped a book on the shelf with the point of it. Suddenly, the books on the shelf moved away and formed an entrance into a side chamber from Dumbledore’s office. He looked back at James and motioned for him to follow as he stepped into the side room. James quickly followed him, both astounded and not all that shocked to learn that the headmaster’s office had some special secrets about it. 

Inside the room was what seemed to be a private study complete with a bathroom, a second desk, a coffee station with a french press, candy table, and several more book shelves. Some of these shelves were encased and secured with locking charms. James watched in fascination as Dumbledore made some complicated wand movements in front of one of these encased shelves and it sprung open. Dumbledore proceeded to reach in and remove several books before turning to James. 

“These are some of the various books that have been removed from the school library over the several centuries we have been open. A few contain information relating to Horcruxes, one has information about philosopher’s stones, two are potions books that contain incomplete recipes for those we had discussed. But even with these, the research is incomplete. I need access to those books that only some pure blood families have. Some families have works so ancient in their vaults that are not replicated anywhere else. But, alas, I will most likely never be granted access to those works. 

“You are welcome to borrow these for educational purposes of course. I will expect them back upon the completion of your inquiries.”

James gingerly took the books from Dumbledore. He looked down at them, it was almost as if he could feel the evil of them leaking out onto his fingertips. He looked at the top book; it was made of black leather, what he hoped was leather, and was embossed with liquid gold. He didn’t recognize the symbols on the front, he assumed they were ancient runes. He supposed he had to learn how to read runes now. 

“Uh, thank you?” James asked, unsure of how he should respond to the moment. 

“You are very welcome,” Dumbledore said, smiling, “If you will follow me, I don’t like to dwell too long in this particular room.”

“Albus,” James started as they walked back into the main office area, “We need to discuss the prophecy. If Voldemort comes back like we think he will, we need to prepare Harry for what he’s going to have to do.”

“I have already given you my advice, James, that has not changed.”

“Albus, I think you’re really not thinking this through. Sure, Harry is a child. But if we train him now, without telling him he’s training for something, isn’t that better than sending him in blind, unprepared, and defenseless when Voldemort ultimately returns?”

“James, you need to let Harry be a child. Training him now for war will change who he is meant to be. Should a child grow up knowing he will have to kill or be killed?”

“Yes! So that he can better prepare himself for the eventuality of his situation he should! He needs proper training, a variance from the Ministry to practice defensive and offensive magic outside of school. He needs physical training, martial arts and weaponry. He needs knowledge, Albus, just as much as he needs to be able to be a child. He can have both.”

“I believe,” Dumbledore said carefully, “that this is where we must agree to disagree, James. If you wish to choose to train Harry I shall not stop you. I will assist in any way that I can. But, please, remember my advice and think about this before you make your decision.”

“I have thought about it, Albus, and I’ve made my decision. Harry needs training and he’s going to get it. He’s going to learn how to fight with his fists and with weapons as it becomes more age appropriate. I can’t have the information and the ability to prepare him and then not do it. That would be setting him up like a lamb for slaughter, Albus.”

“It is your choice.”

“Damn right it’s my choice. I’m his bloody father!” James yelled, “I need to get home. If you have any more information you choose to be forthcoming with, I will appreciate it. Until then, you know where to find me.”

With that, James turned on his heel and threw floo powder onto the logs in the fireplace and headed home.


	21. Chapter Twenty-One: The Prophecy Revealed

Chapter Twenty-One: The Prophecy Revealed

James stepped out of the fireplace at Potter Manor still fuming from his encounter with Dumbledore. While he understood that Dumbledore is one of the greatest minds of the age, he failed to understand how not training Harry to the best of his capabilities was the best option here. 

He stomped through the library in his anger, not even noticing the sleeping Remus on the sofa. As he slammed the large oak door, Remus awoke with a start. Remus quickly wiped off the drool that had pooled on his face and sat up, looking around for the source of the disturbance when he noticed the door was now closed. He quickly got up and looked out of the room. He barely saw the ends of James’ robe whisking around the corner of the hall. 

Remus sped up and followed James to the main stairwell where he finally caught up with the fuming Marauder. 

“James, wait! I need to talk to you!” Remus called. 

James started and looked around, anger and confusion written on his face, “What? Sorry, Moony, I didn’t see you there. I’m kind of lost in my own head here.”

“Is everything alright?” Remus asked, concern gripping him. 

“No. Yes. I don’t know,” James shifted the large stack of books in his arms so that they were slightly resting on the banister, “I went to speak to Dumbledore. About the prophecy and Harry and Voldemort.”

“What Prophecy?”

“The prophecy about Harry and Voldemort. I told you about this, didn’t I?”

“No,” Remus said, shaking his head, “I would have certainly remembered something like this.” 

“I,” James started as he rubbed the back of his neck, “Fuck. Ok. I need to grab a beer before I get into this shit, ok? Can you find Sirius and we can discuss this?”

“Yeah. I think he’s in the living room.”

“Perfect, I’ll meet you there,” James said as he turned to go back down the staircase and to the kitchens. He stopped halfway towards the kitchen and turned back to Remus who was now going up the stairs, “Wait, Moony, what did you need to talk to me about?”

“I—it’s nothing important,” Remus said offhandedly.

“Nah, what is it? Don’t go brushing issues off like that, Moony. Remember what happened the last time?”

Remus snorted, “Yeah. Did your arse ever fully heal after that hex?”

James shifted his feet uncomfortably as he remembered the stinging hex that Remus had used on him many years ago, “I’m not totally sure, honestly.”

“I guess we can discuss it after this prophecy stuff. It’s just about Jean and my outburst earlier. I’m sorry for that, by the way.”

“It’s fine. I overstepped—”

“No, you didn’t, I’ve just been upset about other stuff and I overreacted.”

“Well, I’m surprised it took you that long to blow, to be honest with you mate.”

Remus rolled his eyes, “I’ll meet you in the living room with Sirius in ten, alright?”

“I’ll bring a six pack up,” James said before turning and headed back toward the kitchens.

“Better make it a twelve!” Remus shouted back.

Fifteen minutes later James found himself sitting in his favorite armchair in the living room with a fire going and the record player playing the Beatles. James never quite understood the appeal of the muggle band, but Remus quite enjoyed their music so he didn’t mind it playing. 

Remus had managed to drag Sirius back down from his room to join them at their emergency Marauder meeting. He wasn’t too happy to have been woken up because he had just gotten comfortable and fallen asleep when he was so rudely interrupted. 

They sat together in silence for several minutes drinking their beers. None of them wanted to be the first to inquire or bring up an issue. Finally, Remus spoke.

“So, what is this prophecy you were talking about and why did it make you so pissed off at Dumbledore?”

James sighed and polished off the remaining beer in his bottle. He thought about his words carefully as he reached for another brew, the events of the last few hours replaying in his mind. 

“You two remember how,” James hesitated, “Lily…Harry and I had to go into hiding at the end of the war, right?”

Sirius scowled, “How could I forget. Worst time of my life being separated from you!” he feigned dramatically draping himself over the arm of the couch with his eyes shielded by his forearm. 

Remus casually used his wand to sprits Sirius with some water, “Yeah, I’m pretty sure drama queen and I remember that. Didn’t you tell us that Voldemort was after you?”

James popped the cap off his beer and took a swig before continuing, “Yeah, in a way, I suppose. You see, he wasn’t after us, per se, just—just Harry.”

“He was going after a baby?” Sirius asked, his eyes hardening, “What the hell, man?”

“Yeah. That’s why Dumbledore had us go into hiding.”

“Wait,” Remus interrupted, “Why was You-Know-Who going after Harry and how did you know that?”

James took a long drink from his bottle before relaying his tale to the remaining Marauders.

“Look, I want to start by saying that I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys when this all happened. Dumbledore advised us against telling anyone unnecessary about all of this. I wanted to, but…this was before I learned that Dumbledore’s advice isn’t always the best or most sound. 

“Anyway. Word got to Dumbledore a few weeks before we went into hiding that someone had relayed a prophecy about a boy born at the end of July whose parents had defied Voldemort three times. Once Dumbledore had figured out what couple fit that bill, he then figured out who was expecting. That left us and the Longbottoms. 

“He had all of us go into hiding at different locations with different secret keepers. He felt it prudent to hide any possibility. Apparently, Voldemort decided Harry was his target. We’re still not totally sure why. We suspected at the time it had to do with the fact that Harry would be a half-blood like himself. But, realistically, it was probably because we were more powerful magically than the Longbottoms. No offense to them but Lily herself could out duel Alice and Frank combined. So, we continued hiding. And then, he showed up at the cottage. 

“I don’t remember much after that, but I know he’s not gone and I know when he comes back the first thing he’s going to do is go after Harry. Harry’s going to have to kill Voldemort if he wants to survive this.”

“What was the prophecy?” Sirius asked, his hand white as it gripped the bottle tightly clasped in it. 

James recited the words without reference, his voice flat and distant, “‘The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies...’”

Sirius stared at James open mouthed and whispered, “What. The. Fuck.” 

James put his head in his hands and covered his face as he leaned over his legs. He propped his arms up by the elbows as he continued, “And I went to Dumbledore this evening to discuss the eventuality of Harry and Voldemort meeting and do you know what his advice was? To just let Harry have a childhood. No training, no research, nothing. Just, let Harry grow up and let’s think of potential ways that he was able to sustain a type of immortality. I mean, I understand where he’s coming from but—”

James was surprised as Remus and Sirius responded simultaneously with similar responses. If James hadn’t known them so well, he may have been unable to discern what the two men were saying. 

“What’s Dumbledore playing at?” Remus snapped, “Is he insane?”

“No!” Sirius yelled as he stood up, “Fuck that shit, Prongs. Fuck it. If he’s going to have to face that—that overexaggerated bully then he needs as much training as we can give him! Sure, he needs a childhood, too, but he can’t live his life unprepared and underinformed.”

James looked up at his friends, his eyes icy, “My sentiments exactly. We’re going to start training him in fighting techniques. He isn’t old enough to have a registered wand even with a variance from the Ministry, but we can start him training in the Muggle fashion. But I need your help.”

“I think training him in the history of war and politics will be useful. If he’s the one to defeat this ponce then Harry needs to be trained in war tactics as much as he needs physical training. He’s going to have to lead so many people, he’ll be a general.”

“What’s a general?” Sirius asked.

“It’s a muggle term for someone who leads others in war. They come up with attack strategy and things like that.”

Sirius nodded, “And he should be trained in the politics of the wizarding world. He needs to understand the deep-seated prejudices that he’s going to be up against and why Voldemort’s ideals were so enticing to those old pure-blood families.”

James let out a sigh of relief. He had been most afraid that his friends would side with Dumbledore, that they would agree that Harry should just have a normal childhood. 

“I want him to have a childhood, too, I want to work in this education as a part of his normal life but also allow him to just be a child. He deserves that much.” 

“He will,” Remus assured James, “We can start looking into muggle fighting tomorrow. Maybe we can get him a teacher. Should he learn how to use weapons do you think?”

“Eventually,” James agreed, “For now he’s so young. I think just fighting techniques would be sufficient.”

“I absolutely can’t believe Dumbledore doesn’t want Harry trained,” Sirius spat, “What chance does that boy have of fighting one of the strongest wizards in history if he isn’t given a fighting chance to learn and grow? It’s like he wants Voldemort to have an easier chance to kill Harry or something. What gives?”

“I have no idea,” James said, his eyes hard, “He was very vague in his answers with me. He did give me these books that outline his theories about how Voldemort may have survived that night. He thinks Voldemort may have completed a form of magic to make himself technically immortal.”

“What do you mean technically?” Remus asked.

“There would, hopefully, be a way to kill him, but it’ll be difficult.”

“What are the possible ways? I know of philosopher’s stones and necromancy but that’s about it. And neither of those would render him truly immortal,” Sirius said.

“Those are two he listed. He also talked about soul transfer potions, unicorn blood, and objects called horcruxes.”

Sirius paled, “I forgot about horcruxes.”

“I’m sorry, what is a soul transfer potion and what are horcruxes? I’ve read briefly about a horcrux but the book never gives information outside of they’re horrible and the instructions on how to create one won’t be discussed,” Remus stated.

“A horcrux is the worst kind of magic imaginable. I don’t know how to make one, but I learned about them. My father…he used to make us learn about all the branches of dark magic since Hogwarts refused to teach the subject. They’re basically, like, the object created to house and protect a portion of your soul.”

“A portion of your soul?” Remus asked, he looked slightly ill, “How do you take out a portion of your soul?”

“Well that’s the thing. Only one person in the world ever figured out how to separate a piece but, then, when he tried to encase it into the horcrux he—well, he died in the process. Apparently, he didn’t quite perfect the potion-spell combo to make the object strong enough, durable enough, to house a portion of a soul. But, history says that he had to murder someone, intentionally, in order to rip his soul apart and then complete a complicated spell to remove the portion of soul and then another spell to encase it in the pre-made horcrux. I guess there was a potion you had to make for the object and then, once it had been immersed, you had to complete a spell. I don’t know the spells or the potion or its ingredients, though. But, essentially, housing part of your soul tethers you to this world and, if you lose your body, you can get it back using the piece of soul you had hidden away,” Sirius recited from memory, his eyes distant.

“Your parents forced you to learn all of that?” James asked quietly, his face pale.

Sirius snapped back to reality, his eyes focusing back in on James, “What? Oh, yeah. Toujours Pur and all that,” He responded offhandedly and confusedly. 

James looked at Sirius as he spoke, “And the soul transfer potion was also an incomplete recipe. Apparently, it allows the drinker to trade bodies, their soul anyway, with another drinker. So, if Voldemort was dying, he would drink the potion and his soul would leave his real body and move into another person’s body who had also drunk the potion. This wouldn’t allow him to live forever but it could allow him to avoid death for a really long time.

“It sounds like a Horcrux would allow Voldemort to be more independent, he wouldn’t have to rely on continuously making a potion and forcing someone to drink it or risk not being able to drink his with enough time for it to be effective. Same thing with a sorcerer’s stone. But we don’t really know. it depends on what he was able to create or which spell/potion he was able to complete. But I think we can rule out the soul potion because, otherwise, he would have already returned.”

“That makes sense, James. But he could have also created an entirely new spell or potion that renders him immortal that we don’t know about. We need to consider all the options here,” Remus said as he drug his fingers through his hair, “Hell. Why would anyone want to live forever?”

“Sounds like a headache to me,” Sirius supplied. 

James snorted into his beer as Remus sighed. 

“So, we have a game plan?” Remus asked.

“I think so. Except for whatever you had wanted to discuss, Moony.”

Remus blushed, “Ah, yes, well, it’s quite late, don’t you think?”

He attempted to stand up to leave the room but was met with resistance from Sirius who had grabbed onto his shoulder, “Not so fast, Moony. Prongs spilled his beans, now it’s your turn.”

Remus looked at James and back at Sirius before sighing and settling back into his seat, “Fine. But I’m not happy about it.”

“Spill,” James said.

Remus gave each of them a glare before speaking, “I’m sorry I blew up at you, James. I’ve been preoccupied with my issue with Jane.”

“What issue? You seemed to like her,” James said.

“Oh yeah he likes her,” Sirius said as he wiggled his eyebrows, “He really likes certain parts of her.”

“Come off it!” Remus snapped, “She’s a lovely person and she’s very intelligent and fun to talk to. But she’s a muggle.”

“So? So was your mom,” Sirius argued.

“Yeah, but my dad wasn’t—he wasn’t a werewolf, was he? I can’t expect a muggle to handle my furry problem,” Remus said dejectedly, “And to top it off, I know her friend Rick likes her and Jean is—she’s head over heels for that man and has all but given up on a possibility of something more there.”

“That doesn’t sound like you can’t just get laid, Moony. What’s the big deal?” Sirius asked as he leaned back on the couch and drank some of his beer.

“The point, as you so delicately put it, is that she and I would never have a future even if we wanted one. I could never put my problem onto a muggle. And Rick—he deserves her so much more than I do.”

“Moony, you deserve someone like Jean. Just because you’re a werewolf doesn’t automatically mean you’re the lesser for that,” James said assuringly.

“It’s not just being a werewolf. It’s also the fact that I can’t get or keep a job because of it. I have nothing to give her, nothing to help provide for her or her daughter. She deserves more than to have a leech of a boyfriend.”

“Remus—”

“In any case,” Remus ignored James, “somehow I ended up at her house after our argument and we were…kissing in her front yard when Rick showed up. I could tell, I just know, that he loves her nearly as much as she does him. Who am I to stand in the way of that?” 

Remus bent over and ran his fingers into his hair and gripped his curly locks as he looked at the floor, emotions overwhelming him.

“You don’t,” Sirius said quietly, “Either you and Jean like each other enough that you make it work, or you don’t. I’m going to bed.”

Without another word Sirius got up and exited the living room, blatantly ignoring the protests and questions of James and Remus, both of whom were extremely confused and concerned. 

“What the hell?” James asked Remus, “Is something going on with Sirius?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him around the house much, or had the chance to sit and talk with him as much as we did tonight. It’s a big house.”

“Should we go after him?”

Remus shook his head, “Not tonight. But we do need to talk to him. I don’t think he’s ok. I know for a fact he spends most of his time at the pub down the road. Did you notice how odd he got when he was talking about his father and horcruxes?”

James nodded, “I know Orion Black was a huge dark arts and Voldemort supporter and that he didn’t treat Sirius very well. But he’s never gone into detail about any of it. He just…showed up the summer after 5th year and, after talking to my parents, he moved in and the prat never left. It must have been bad. He was with my mum for about an hour before they came back out. I’d never seen her look so sad. His dad tried to get Sirius to move back to Grimmauld place but, because he was 16, the Ministry said he was old enough to choose where to live. Apparently my parents gave some strong testimony as to why he should have been living with us. Anyway, he chose to live with us, in the end. I never asked, and he never offered, any context to his sudden departure from his family. We just…”

“Agreed not to discuss it?” Remus offered.

“Yeah. Basically.”

Remus frowned, “Well, I think it’s high time we asked. Whatever’s going on, it’s big and it’s a problem. He’s going to self-destruct.”

“And you being the expert in self-destruction would know.”

“Ha, yeah, I suppose I would.”

“Let’s give him the night, then. Why don’t we head up to bed? Harry has that playdate with the Malfoy spawn in the morning and I’m exhausted.”

Remus agreed and both men headed up to bed. As they lay in their rooms, both Marauders speculated as to what was going on in Sirius’ mind, neither able to make any concrete conclusions.

~ID~

Sirius lay in his bed staring at the ceiling thinking about the events of the evening. As he lifted the bottle in his hand to his lips too many memories forced their way into his head. Being forced to learn about the most vile spells, learning about dark potions and their sacrifice requirements, being ‘disciplined’ by his father. All of these memories flooded into his head as he drank. 

The alcohol began numbing the pain he felt from the ghosts of those spells. He remembered sharply, for a moment, learning the flaying hex. He looked down at his bare leg where a tattoo covered the large scar he had received as education that day. For a moment, he could still see the chunk of his flesh on the floor of the room. As he drank more of the whiskey he rationalized that the flesh was really his red t-shirt crumpled into a pile and the blood was simply the remnants of the beer bottle he had smashed when he came into the room. 

“If you don’t understand what these spells do how will you ever be able to perform them!” 

Sirius’ eyes became wet as he threw the empty bottle at the wall as hard as he could at the memory, his leg burning, searing. He reached down and massaged the old wound as he lay back down in the overly soft bed. It wasn’t long until he lay on the floor again, like he had done since he came back from Azkaban. To him, the floor was simply more comfortable than the overly feathered bed that was not his own.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two: The Slytherin and Gryffindor

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Slytherin and Gryffindor

Remus stepped into the kitchen at Potter Manor yawning. He hadn’t slept well that night; with the full moon only a few days away he was finding it hard to tune down that wolfish part of him and the noises that normally don’t bother him at night had continuously reverberated in his ears, keeping him awake. 

He scanned the room and noticed that, like usual, he was the first to wake up. So, he made himself a latte, taking care to grind the beans extra fine and to pull the espresso just the way he wanted it. This morning he decided to steam some extra milk so that it was extra creamy. He decided to add some mocha to his cup this morning; Remus often enjoyed his coffee tasting more like hot chocolate than actual coffee. The elves had also learned that when Remus wanted a latte, he enjoyed the small pleasure of making it himself. 

As he sat down at the kitchen table, Remus pulled out the letter Dumbledore had mailed James the other day. He looked carefully over the paragraphs about him and the open posts at Hogwarts. It was no secret that Remus had always wanted to be a teacher. He had tutored classmates while at Hogwarts and had made some decent money doing so, but he had never been comfortable allowing himself to be alone with those much younger than him who couldn’t properly defend themselves if his wolfish side over took him. But, really, how different would it be being a teacher at Hogwarts, where the other professors would be if something happened, then when he was a tutor at Hogwarts? 

But if something happened to a student because of him, he would never be able to forgive himself. 

Remus’ eyes fell on the middle paragraph of the letter once again.

I understand his concerns regarding his ailment. That would not be a problem here as we do still have his room available for use as well as a potion master willing to brew the wolfsbane potion as necessary for him. He would be no potential danger towards the students or staff of Hogwarts. My determination regarding postings is whether the candidate has the necessary credentials and temperament to be a professor here at Hogwarts.

As he reread it he continued to wonder if Dumbledore truly believed they could make it safe for him to teach. He still had the Shrieking Shack available and there was someone to brew some potion called the wolfsbane? He had heard rumor that there was a new potion but he hadn’t had the opportunity to research it yet let alone test what it does. From his understanding it was currently being tested with the Ministry and seemed to have favorable results for whatever it does. 

Remus folded the letter back up and drained the rest of the coffee in his cup before getting up. As he walked back toward his room to get ready for the day he continued to turn over the offer in his mind. If he decided to take the position at Hogwarts, if Dumbledore even offered it to him officially, that would mean he would have to break up with Jean. Was that something he really wanted to do? He and Jean got on well and she had been a good friend to him since he moved to Potter Manor. But this is his dream job. To be able to teach and study Ancient Runes and be paid for it was something Remus had never thought would be possible for him. 

As he stepped into his room he closed and locked the door. He headed toward the attached bathroom as he peeled off the night shirt and pants he had slept in before turning on the hot water. As he watched the glass steam he thought more of Jean, of her warm hair and smile, and of her wide and soft hips. He couldn’t help but wonder as he stepped into the hot spray what she would look like without her warm sweaters and tight-fitting jeans, her luscious breasts laying on her as she looked up from him. 

Suddenly, another face filled his imagination as he remembered how Jean looked at Rick and how Rick at looked at him. Remus knew how Jean felt about Rick. And Rick is a muggle; he knows Hermione well and Remus didn’t think that Jean knew how Rick felt back. He wasn’t sure that either knew how the other felt. 

But maybe Jean really was ready to move on. Maybe she didn’t feel that way about Rick any longer. Remus could certainly see him and Jean getting along well. But there would always be the worry in the back of his mind; putting a muggle and her small child in the direct line of danger of a werewolf. How could he do that to anyone let alone someone he’s grown to care about? 

Remus sighed as he turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. He was going to have to make a decision and he was going to have to make it soon. 

He quickly dried off and got dressed in his best robes. They were black and only had two patches on them so far but Remus could tell another was going to be needed soon; you can only magically repair fabric so many times before it required a nonmagical fix. 

Remus gathered his Runes research and dictionary before headed back to the library. He stood looking at the fireplace for some time, contemplating whether this was the right or best idea. Was it even polite to just drop in on a potential employer this early in the morning? 

He glanced back down at the letter Dumbledore had sent him two days ago. 

Stop by any time to discuss your potential future at Hogwarts, Remus.

Did he really mean any time? Surely not. But, this is Dumbledore, he’s always been quite eccentric and it might be good to have one of the Marauder’s keeping an eye on the old coot for Harry’s sake. Remus’ eyes hardened as he thought of Dumbledore’s advice regarding Harry. Looking back up at the fireplace, he grabbed a large pinch of floo powers and threw it onto the burnt wood. 

For Harry, Remus thought as he stepped into the flames and headed to Hogwarts. 

~ID~

When the flames in his office turned green, Dumbledore looked up and waited for his visitor to arrive. He smiled as the familiar face of Remus Lupin stepped through the fire and into his office. 

Remus looked up at Dumbledore worried that he had interrupted the headmaster’s early morning and let out a deep breath as he saw the smile on the old wizard’s face. 

“Good morning, Albus, I hope I’m not interrupting your morning,” Remus said as he used his wand to clean the soot off of himself.

“Not at all, Remus,” Dumbledore said as he held out his hand toward the chairs in front of his desk, “Please, take a seat. I had hoped you would come visit me soon. I was beginning to get worried that I would have to start searching for someone else to take over the Ancient Runes post.”

Remus furrowed his brow as he took a seat across form Dumbledore, “Search for someone else? Albus you haven’t even interviewed me.”

“Remus there is much more that goes into filling a post at Hogwarts than a simple interview. I have, of course, spoken to the professor you had during school in the subject and she couldn’t recommend you for the position more than she did. I have also read your research about some of the new runes discovered in Chile; it was fascinating. But, I fear you are hear to discuss more than what the position would entail or your qualifications?”

“Albus, you can’t possibly believe that the students of Hogwarts would be safe with me here, can you?”

“Why not? They were perfectly safe while you went to school here, weren’t they?” Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his blue eyes.

“Severus almost died because of me!” Remus shouted.

“Because of Sirius,” Dumbledore corrected, “Sirius was the one who convinced Severus to wander down to the Whomping Willow that evening, not you. Had Sirius not done that, you would have never come close to injuring any student or professor of Hogwarts. And now that the wolfsbane potion can be brewed, I have no doubt that you would be as safe as any professor I could hire.”

“What exactly is the wolfsbane potion? I’ve heard of it but haven’t had time to look into or try it.”

“It’s a potion that allows your mind to remain when you change. That is, the wolf does not truly take over and you will remember who you are. It also causes you to become drowsy so that you can sleep during your transformation. It has been tested extensively by the creator and the Ministry and our Potions Master has agreed to make it for you so long as you decide to teach here. The cost of the potion will go to the school as part of your contract for employment.”

“How much does this potion cost to make, exactly?” Remus asked carefully.

“About 100 galleons per month. Some of the ingredients are expensive but can be utilized for multiple batches.”

“A hun—a hundred galleons?” Remus asked, his eyes wide as shock filled his face, “Albus that’s too expensive I couldn’t let—”

“It wouldn’t be the most expensive potion this school has provided for one of its staff members,” Dumbledore interrupted, “Truly, one of the previous headmasters of Hogwarts needed a potion daily that cost 200 galleons per batch and each batch would last about two weeks. He was employed by Hogwarts for nearly 40 years before his untimely passing. And Professor Sprout has so kindly agreed to plant and grow some of the more expensive magical plants used so that by this time next year the costs of your potions will decrease by about 40 galleons a month.”

“Next—How long is this contract for, Albus? I haven’t even agreed to work here yet.”

“For as long as we would like it to be. So, does this mean that you don’t want the position?” Dumbledore asked as he sat back in his chair.

“No, I just, I have to talk to James and Sirius and I have to—can I make a decision by the end of the week?”

“By all means. But if you do not answer me by Friday, I’m afraid I will have to search for someone to fill the post as classes do begin in almost a month.”

“I understand,” Remus said as he stood up, “I just, I need to talk to someone before I can give you an answer.”

“I look forward to it,” Dumbledore said with a smile, “Please, go enjoy your day. I’m sure you have plans.”

Remus threw floo powder into the fireplace before turning back to Dumbledore and saying, “Have a good one!” and then flooing back to Potter Manor.

By the time Remus stepped back onto the carpet in the library at Potter Manor he had made his decision. He quickly ran upstairs and changed into jeans and a sweater before headed out of the house.

Remus wasn’t worried about waking Jean up; he knew she was an early riser, too, even when Hermione was visiting her grandparents. As he walked he contemplated how to talk to Jean about this opportunity and about them. He has never been good at discussing his emotions despite being more in tune with them than the other Marauders. The only person he had ever been comfortable discussing those with had been Lily mostly due to the fact that they had been friends for so long and, possibly, because she tended to understand him more than other people. He and Lily had always been close but they had never fancied one another. For him, while he enjoyed Lily’s company, she was just not what he had been looking for in life and for her, though she didn’t realize it, it had always been James. 

Remus quickly found himself in front of Jean’s little house and smiled when he noticed her perky bum sticking up at him from the flower bed. He took a moment to admire the tight curves of her arse and thighs before clearing his throat. 

Jean jumped and turned around as she kneeled and smiled when she saw Remus. She quickly stood up and brushed the dirt off of her before engulfing Remus in a large hug and giving him a long kiss. 

When they broke apart Jean smiled, “Well, this is quite the surprise! Good morning, Remus.”

“Morning,” Remus said, “I came over to talk to you about—” 

At that moment the front door to Jean’s house burst open and Rick walked out carrying a squealing and laughing Hermione upside down.

“Mr. Rick!” Hermione squealed, “let me go!”

“Ninny!” Rick squealed back, mimicking Hermione, “Give me my muffin back!”

Hermione giggled as she produced a chocolate muffin seemingly out of thin air and waived it as close to Rick’s face as she could get.

Rick held her legs with his forearm and took the muffin, smiling, “And where was my Ninny hiding it, huh?”

“Secret,” Hermione said, her face alive with mischief. 

“Uh huh, we’ll see about that!” Rick shouted as he stuck the muffin on the railing and began tickling Hermione mercilessly.

Hermione squealed with delight and shouted, “A magician never tells!”

“Where was my muffin, Ninny?” Rick asked as she smiled, “Where was Ninny keeping it?”

“My pocket!” Hermione shouted as she laughed. 

“I’ll believe you. This time!” Rick said as he stopped tickling Hermione. 

Hermione looked around for her mom and squealed when she saw Remus standing there and struggled to get loose from Rick, “Mr. Lupin! Is Harry here?”

“Not today, Hermione. We have a park date later this week, though.”

“Morning, Lupin.”

“Rick,” Remus acknowledge. 

As Rick flipped Hermione over his shoulder and then onto the ground, Remus couldn’t help but notice how good with Hermione he was. Yeah, they were in good hands. 

“Jean we wanted to let you know the muffins were done. This little sneak-thief stole mine right from under me, didn’t you, Ninny?”

Hermione giggled as she ran over to her mom and hugged her legs, “We made chocolate!”

“Did you?” Jean asked enthusiastically, “I love chocolate. Do you want one, Remus?”

“Uh, sure, I can come in for a moment.”

Jean lifted Hermione into her arms as they walked, “So, what did you want to talk about?”

“What? Oh, that can wait. Now I really want one of these muffins.”

Jean eyed him quizzically but continued on through the small house and to the kitchen. The four of them all grabbed muffins and ate them quickly. Remus had to admit that they were quite good. The chocolate chips were still warm and gooey as they ate. Once they were done, Hermione dragged Rick upstairs so she could show him how well she can read the book she got at the library. Rick simply mooned after Hermione and followed her upstairs, listening to her babble.

Remus turned to Jean and looked into her brown eyes, “Jean—”

“You just want to be friends, don’t you?” Jean asked, her eyes sad.

“I—how did you know…?” 

“I could tell when you got here. That and you said you wanted to talk. That typically means someone just wants to be friends. What changed, Remus?”

“I got a job offer in another country at a private boarding school. I won’t be living here starting in September and they don’t have phones at this school. They’re strictly off the grid so to speak. It isn’t fair to you or Hermione to keep going when I can’t be here.”

Jean smiled sadly, “No, I suppose it wouldn’t be. What will you be teaching?”

“History,” Remus lied, “Ancient civilizations and the like. Rise and falls of empires. They’re also going to allow me to continue conducting my independent research.”

“Wow. This sounds like an incredible opportunity. I hope that you like it there,” Jean said before frowning, “This doesn’t mean that Hermione has to stop playing with Harry, right?”

“No, no I would never do that to them. James or Sirius can bring Harry to see Hermione and she would still be welcome over, of course,” Remus hesitated before continuing, “Jean, I think you should consider asking Rick out. I know you said he doesn’t have feelings for you but, I think you might be wrong. And he really seems to care about Hermione just as much as he does you.”

“I appreciate your suggestion, Remus, but I already know he isn’t interested in me. I’m not going to pine after someone I can never have. I hope that you write to me, though. I’ll miss your company.”

“Of course. You’ve become a good friend to me, I don’t want to lose that. Plus, Hermione is an intelligent child and I’m interested to see where that takes her in life.”

Jean smiled, “Me too.”

Remus looked up as he heard Hermione and Rick coming back toward the kitchen. He saw Hermione run in, laughing, as she came to Jean, “Mummy, reading time?”

“Sure sweet pea,” Jean said.

Jean pulled Hermione into her lap and looked at the book before opening it and beginning to read. Remus simply waived goodbye and saw Jean smile and nod before he headed back out of the kitchen and towards the door. He found Rick standing in the living room with his arms crossed.

“Leaving already?” Rick asked.

“Yes. I have to get home. I’ve been offered a job out of the country and I need to prepare for the trip there.”

“So you won’t be hanging around as much anymore?” Rick asked.

“No. And I’ve broken up with Jean. She deserves someone who’s here more than I will be. Plus, she’s in love with someone else. I can’t keep her from that no matter how stubborn she is about telling that person.”

“Who is he?” Rick asked, his eyes darkening.

“I think you know him. You love her.”

“Of course I do, she’s my best friend.”

“That’s not what I meant.” 

Rick paled, “Well, even if I did it wouldn’t matter. She would never be interested in me.”

“I think you would be quite surprised at who she’s interested in. Tell her. I think you’ll be quite shocked.”

Rick frowned, “Well, have a nice one, then.”

Rick watched as Remus nodded and headed out the door. He stood there for a few moments processing the conversation that had just transpired between the two men before shaking his head and wandering into Jean’s kitchen. He smiled, his eyes softening, when he saw Jean and Hermione sitting at the table finishing her book. 

He waited patiently for a few moments as they finished. Once they had, Hermione looked up and smiled, “Uncle Rick I read the book!” 

“I heard! It was wonderful, Ninny. You did a lovely job.”

“Upstairs, nugget,” Jean said, “It’s time for you to go get dressed for the day. Can you handle that on your own today?”

Hermione nodded, “Will it be hot or cold?”

Rick laughed, “Hot, Ninny; it’s summer remember?”

Hermione giggled as she jumped down and ran out of the room, leaving Jean and Rick alone.

“Lupin told me he ditched you.”

“He didn’t ditch me,” Jean said, frowning, “He took a job abroad.”

“Same thing in my book,” Rick said bitterly.

Jean rolled her eyes, “And why are you suddenly so interested in my dating life? You certainly never cared before.”

“Well, you haven’t dated anyone since Greg so there was no dating life.”

“Of no fault of my own,” Jean said bitterly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.” Jean said as she began getting up from the table, “I should check on Hermione. 

Rick watched as Jean walked out of the room and sighed. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep his feelings a secret. 

~ID~

James and Harry were waiting patiently in the library for Narcissa and Draco to arrive for the day. Harry was looking through a children’s magic book while James was reading Quidditch Through The Ages when Sirius wandered into the room.

James glanced up, “Morning, Sirius. Didn’t think we’d see you up this early!”

“I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to annoy my dearest cousin, now would I?” Sirius asked with a hint of mischief in his voice.

James frowned, “There will be no pranking anyone today. I don’t know what her end game is, but I really don’t want to make it worse if it’s already not a good one.”

Sirius pouted, “You never let us have any fun, Prongs.”

“Uncle Sirus can you read to me?” Harry asked from the floor as he held up his book.

Sirius frowned and ran his fingers over his chin, “Uh, I don’t know, BK. I was going to try to get some stuff done.”

“Oh, ok,” Harry said, disappointedly. 

As Harry looked down at his book, dejected, Sirius sighed, “I guess I can read it once with you while you wait.”

Harry jumped up and ran over to Sirius and gave him a big hug before handing him the book and dragging him to a couch. Sirius sat uncomfortably next to Harry and began to read. They had gotten about halfway through the book when the fireplace lit up and a woman holding a young, blond boy stepped out. 

Narcissa looked around the library as she stood up straight, her head high, “Well, this is nearly as large as the library at Malfoy Manner. I’m rather impressed, Lord Potter.”

“James,” He corrected her, “And it goes back that way for a bit yet. You’re welcome to explore it if you would like.”

Narcissa’s eyes lit up as she looked around the corner of the room took in the full extent of the library, “I think I would very much like to puruse your shelves. If Draco doesn’t mind going off with Harry to play by themselves?”

“I have toys in my room!” Harry announced excitedly to the blond haired boy. 

“Mother,” Draco said as he clung closer to Narcissa, “Come?”

“Draco, we do not cling. Please go with Harry and play. I promise he is a very nice boy and you will have fun.”

Draco frowned at Harry as Harry spoke, “I have blocks and espoding snap! Wanna play?”

Narcissa placed Draco on his feet next to Harry, “What are blocks?”

Harry’s eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped open, “They’re the best! We can build stuff! Come on!”

Draco looked back at Narcissa as Harry grabbed his hand and drug the boy out of the room and up the stairs. 

Narcissa frowned, “What are blocks?”

“They’re a muggle toy,” James explained, “They’re made of wood and kids use them to build towers and all sorts of things. It’s supposed to promote creativity in the child. Harry seems to like them well enough.”

“I’m not sure Draco should be playing with muggle toys,” Narcissa said as she pursed her lips.

“I promise there’s nothing to worry about with them. They’re all the rage with muggles. Every muggle child has a set of blocks.”

“Hmm.” 

“Most of Harry’s toys are muggle toys. If you don’t want your son playing with them then maybe you should take him home. Or you can let him explore on his own and you can investigate my library.”

“Leave it to my cousin to doubt chucks of wood,” Sirius said, laughing.

“Fine,” Narcissa said as she put her nose in the air, “I shall explore your library. Please have your elves check in on the children. We shall be leaving at 3.”

Before James could answer, Narcissa had swept off down the rows of books, her eyes alight with excitement as she read the titles on the bindings. James sighed and decided to leave her be as he went back to studying. Sirius simply shrugged and headed out for the day. James had often wondered what Sirius did during the day; to his knowledge he had not found a job or completed his examination for the auror department. But that wasn’t something James had time to worry about or investigate today. 

Harry and Draco had spent the better part of the day playing together. Once Draco had understood not only what blocks were but also how to play with them, the two boys had created block forts and had a battle between humans and dragons. The game only ended once the dragons had destroyed the human’s blockade and the humans had trained the dragons to be ridden. 

After blocks Harry had shown Draco their quidditch pitch where he showed off his toy brooms. Harry was excited to learn that Draco also enjoyed riding brooms and the boys spent time racing each other around the pitch. As they were half way through their third race, Harry had won twice and Draco would have won the third, Gus showed up to tell Draco it was time to leave. Draco successfully pleaded with Narcissa to stay until dinner time because he was having so much fun. Really, it didn’t take much convincing as Narcissa had found a muggle book that she didn’t want to put down. 

Just before dinner Draco and Narcissa bid their farewells, promising another playdate soon. Harry also made a hasty invitation to his birthday party the next weekend which Narcissa accepted gratefully. Draco was excited to hear that the Weasleys would be there as Harry had told him all about them. Draco was anxious to meet the children and hoped that they liked him.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three: A Perfect Day

Chapter Twenty-Three: A Perfect Day

Harry woke up on the morning of his 4th birthday both nervous and excited. He had never hadn’t had a birthday party that he could remember and a part of him was still wondering whether his dad and uncles would forget about it. Or worse, Harry imagined as he snuggled under his blankets, what if no one showed up to the party? 

Harry’s vivid imagination showed him the daunting scene of an empty party room with just himself sitting at the table. The candles on his cake had burnt out, wax pooled all over the icing. His mental self sat looking toward the Manor from the grassy quidditch pitch wishing that the door would open and a friend would walk through it. Ginny or Ron or maybe Draco. He would even be happy if Dudley showed up because that would mean that no one forgot about him. 

Shaking his head, Harry rolled over and hid deeper under his blankets. He knew no one would remember, no one was going to show up at his party. Why would they? He was a little freak and no one wants to be friends with a freak. 

At some point Harry must have fallen back to sleep because that was where James found him, huddled under his blankets, two hours later. James stepped aside as Coco zoomed beside him and flew onto Harry’s bed and dug at the sheets until he found the boy. She promptly began licking Harry’s face until he squealed with delight and hugged her while she tried to wriggle free. 

“Harry, I thought you’d be up by now. It’s your birthday!” James said laughing. 

Harry looked at his dad before covering his face with his blanket again, “I’m tired.”

James frowned, “Tired? You slept all night and it’s already 9. Are you feeling ok?”

Harry nodded.

“Then why don’t we get up and go see what we can con Cirri into cooking for us this morning, huh? I think Moony and Padfoot had something for you downstairs.”

Harry carefully peeked out from under his blankets, “They remembered?”

“Of course they remembered your birthday. Why wouldn’t they?” James asked as he sat next to Harry on the large bed.

“I don’t have birthdays,” Harry said as the tears welled in his eyes again, “No birthdays for Harry.”

“What do you mean? You have a birthday—did your aunt and uncle forget your birthday?”

“They knew,” Harry said as the tears spilled over, “I don’t get a birthday.”

“Because they said you were a freak?” James recalled, anger filling him as he saw Harry nod, the tear tracks on his face fresh. 

“Bloody hell, I wish I had done more than just take you home that day, Harry.”

“What bloody hell mean?” Harry asked, his face glistening.

“Bloody—no, don’t repeat that until you’re older, kiddo. It’s a bad word.”

“Why can you say it?” 

“Because I’m the dad.”

“That’s a bad reason,” Harry said defiantly.

James couldn’t help but laugh. Harry had placed his hands on his little hips and made a face at James while his little voice spoke so sternly. At that moment, Harry looked so much like Lily that James only knew that Harry was his son because they looked physically identical save Harry’s eyes. 

Harry looked at James confusedly and embarrassed as James roared with laughter, “What’s funny?”

“It’s just, you reminded me of your mum for a moment. She used to give me that same look when she was telling me off. Blimey I miss your mum.”

“I don’t remember her,” Harry said sadly, “Was she nice?”

James pulled Harry in close and held him, “The nicest. And she was so beautiful. She loved you so much, Harry. Though, I’m not sure she would have approved of us teaching you to prank so early on in your life; not that she couldn’t have expected it mind you.”

“What did she look like?” Harry asked, his eyes wide and pleading.

“Well, she had this beautiful, long red hair. It looked like fire—”

“Like Ginny!” Harry interrupted.

James smiled, “Yes, very much like Ginny’s. Not as dark, though. Your mum’s was a bit more—orangish I guess. It was lighter. Ginny’s is a darker red. And your mum, you have her eyes. The shape and the color. It’s sometimes a shock to see her eyes coming out of my face, you know. I have photos somewhere. We can pull them out and I can show you. Would you like that?”

Harry nodded, “She sings real nice.”

James stared down at Harry’s face, “Yes, she did sing beautifully. You remember that?”

“Someone singing,” Harry said smiling brightly, “So, I really have a party?”

“Yes, you really have a party and your friends will be here in about three hours so we’d better have breakfast and get you cleaned up, shouldn’t we?”

Harry whooped and sprung out of bed before running to the bathroom. He quickly undressed for his bath and, when he realized that James hadn’t followed him, stuck his head back out of the door, “Bath time daddy!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Slave driver!” James feigned exhaustion, “I’ll be in in a minute! You know how to start it?”

“Yes!” Harry shouted as he ran over to the tub and turned the knob, letting the water run free. 

James quickly washed Harry and dressed him for the day before they headed down for breakfast. The elves let Harry choose what everyone would eat for the day and Harry, of course, chose his favorite: french toast with sausage. James, Harry, and his uncles ate quickly so they could set up for the party. They would be having it outside and James had rented a muggle contraption called a bounce house which he had learned from Jean was coveted by children for birthday parties. 

Remus and Sirius surprised Harry by gifting his present early because Hermione and Jean would be arriving for the party soon and, as muggles, they couldn’t know anything about the wizarding world. They had together paid for Harry to participate in a little league quidditch team run by the coach of the Wimbourne Wasps. They had been able to get him into the 5-8 age bracket by sending in a memory of Harry riding on his broom which will allow Harry to participate in actual quidditch games every Saturday. 

Harry had been overjoyed with the gift from Remus and Sirius and hugged both of his uncles so tightly they thought their heads would pop off. They, mostly Sirius, had also purchased him all of the equipment he would need to participate including new broom gloves, quidditch robes, goggles with his glasses prescription in them, and a cup. Harry had been especially pleased with the new quidditch robes because his uncles had purchased a set of Portree robes and on the back said “Potter 4”. Harry had put the clothes on and shown his uncles how well the robes and gloves fit but was disappointed when he was told he could not fly his broom because his guests would be arriving any moment. 

Harry’s magical party guests had been requested to arrive by coming up the lane due to having Hermione joining in the festivities. Harry anxiously watched the drive leading to their house and waited for his friends to come one by one. 

James was just putting the finishing touches on the decorations while watching Harry facing the lane. They had chosen a “quidditch” theme for the party. Which, to Hermione and Jean, would look like a wizarding theme. James had found a table cloth for the large picnic table they had that had brooms and small quidditch balls on it that would look wizardly to the muggles. He had also gotten the sheet cake to have crossing brooms on it as well as little snitches all around it. behind the picnic table was the bounce house that looked like Hogwarts. It was large with several “rooms” for the kids to jump on as well as a climbing wall and a large slide. James had also rented a large tent to put up over the picnic table and several folding tables and chairs in the lawn so the children could sit in the shade. 

Just as two people started walking up the lane toward the house Remus finished putting the vanishing charm onto the quidditch pitch so that it remained hidden for the duration of the party. Sirius had just finished setting up something called a slip n’ slide. He had used magic to keep the water flowing, but hooked up a useless hose to make it seem like it was working in the muggle fashion. 

When he caught sight of the two people walking toward the house Harry jumped up and shouted in excitement. He quickly ran over to the busy haired girl and gave her a large hug hello before dragging her toward the party area. Jean laughed as Harry pulled Hermione behind him, chattering excitedly about everything planned and whether she had brought a swimsuit. 

Jean made her way over to the tent in the yard and held out a gift to James, “Thank you for inviting Hermione to Harry’s party. Where can I put his gift?” 

“Oh, right. Hadn’t thought about that. Hmm. How about over on that table? I forgot people bring gifts to kids parties. Did Hermione remember to bring a swimsuit? We have the slip n’ slide all set up on the lawn.”

“Yes, she has it on already; she was too excited to pack it and decided to wear it over. I figure we don’t live far if she needs a change of clothes, but it’s so hot I think the sun will dry her before she needs them.”

James turned around just in time to watch Sirius swagger over to him and Jean as he slicked his hair back from his face and put a thumb through his belt loop.

“Slide’s set up, Prongs,” He said as he looked Jean up and down, taking in her full figure, carefully licking his lips, “And who might you be?”

“Not for you, bad dog!” Remus said as he lightly smacked Sirius upside the head, “This is Hermione’s mom, Jean. How are you?”

Jean smiled, “And why am I not for him? He sure is handsome enough.”

Sirius turned to Remus and looked at him sappily, “She said I’m handsome.”

Remus rolled his eyes, “Unless you’re looking for a good shag Sirius isn’t the guy for you. Speaking of, I thought you were bringing Rick?” 

“Maybe I do want a good shag. Might knock some sense into—well, don’t just assume. He’ll be here in a little while, he had to finish up a research paper for class. He’s always leaving them until the last minute.”

“So,” Sirius said as he threw his arm around Jean’s shoulders, “it’s a shag you’re after?” Sirius wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. 

Jean looked at Sirius, an eyebrow raised, before turning to James and Remus, “Is he always like this? He acts like he hasn’t had a good lay in in years.”

“Well—”

“Because I haven’t, babe. I was in the hoosegow, the slammer, the stoney lonesome, the big house. In other words, jail, Honey.”

Alarmed, Jean squeaked at Remus, “Excuse me?”

“Yeah, it’s not what you think,” Remus said casually.

James, at the same time, “He was innocent, it was a huge mix up.” 

“Uh huh,” Jean said, unsure of what to think. 

“So,” Sirius said pulling Jean close, “What do you say, babe? You, me, and a little vertical tango?”

“I think not. Thanks for the offer, though.” 

Sirius pulled his arm off of Jean and held his hands up, “Hey, your loss, am I right? So, who’s this Rick guy? Isn’t he the dude who was jealous of you, Remus?”

“Rick is my friend from college. We’re both in the dentistry program.”

Sirius shivered, “I never understood why anyone would want to spend their lives looking into other people’s mouths.”

Jean shrugged, “I don’t know. I find it fascinating.”

Just then, a large group of people, all with red hair, came into view as they walked up the large driveway toward the party area. All seven Weasley children were in attendance, each looking in fascination at the large bounce castle and the slip n’ slide. The twins, Fred and George, both exchanged a mischievous look before Mrs. Weasley pulled them aside and gave them a stern talking to about how they’re at a birthday party and under no circumstances were they to prank anyone. In a hushed tone she reminded them that there would be muggles in attendance and she wouldn’t help them if they broke the statute of secrecy today. 

With Fred and George properly chastised, the group of seven children ran toward the bounce house where Harry and Hermione were already playing, anxious to release some of their summer energy. James could hear Harry roar with delight as he saw Ron and Ginny. He grabbed Hermione’s hand as he made a beeline towards his friends so he could introduce them to Hermione. 

Bill and Charley quickly instituted a game involving running through the obstacle course that was the bounce house. They split all the children into teams and they all began racing and screaming through the castle as another group approached the home. Neville, Wilson, and Augusta Longbottom were walking quickly up the path. Augusta was practically dragging Neville by the arm toward the party. 

“Afternoon Wilson, Augusta, thanks for bringing Neville,” James said, “Would either of you like something to eat or drink? Sirius is just lighting up the grill.”

Augusta furrowed her brow, “I’m sorry, what is a grill?”

James laughed and glanced around to be sure that Jean wasn’t within earshot before replying, “Right, a grill is a muggle cooking device. They use it for meats and, sometimes, vegetables. Remus convinced us to buy one and Sirius has been in love with it all summer. He’s making burgers and hotdogs today for everyone. I also convinced him to make corn on the cob. I’ve never had corn as good as when Sirius makes it on the grill.”

“And it’s safe to eat the food?” Wilson asked curiously as he examined the grill beside the tent, “It can cook everything the whole way through? How does it work?”

“Well, we have a propane grill, so it runs on gas. But some use charcoal.”

“You’re putting gas in our food?” Mrs. Weasley interrupted.

“No, the gas is used to make the fire to cook our food,” Sirius explained, “Here, if you want to come over here I’ll demonstrate.”

As the small group of curious wizards gathered around the grill, James noticed a small child walking up the driveway. He frowned and quickly headed towards Draco, concerned as to why he had arrived by himself. 

“Draco, where’s your mother or father?”

“Mother told me to give you this,” Draco replied, “She had Dobby drop me off down there. Can I play?”

James took the slip of paper Draco was holding out and nodded, confused, “Sure. The other children are on the bounce house. You’re welcome to join them.”

“What’s a bounce house?” Draco asked.

“Oh it’s a muggle thing; you jump on it and bounce really high. I think the other kids are racing on it.”

Draco shrugged and then made his way toward the bounce house. James watched as Draco surreptitiously looked around him before taking off full speed toward the castle and climbing onto it and joining the fray of children. He smiled as he looked down at the parchment in his hand.

Lord Potter,

Now that we have met in the capacity of parents and Draco has been to your home before I felt I was able to send him for Harry’s party in the normal fashion. As requested, I had our elf, Dobby, take Draco to the bottom of the hill outside the gates to your home so he could walk to the party without alerting the muggles in attendance. I made Draco aware that any discussion of magic or the wizarding world was forbidden. Please let me know if he fails to comply with your rules. 

Narcissa

James looked up as he heard someone approaching him and nodded at Remus who was coming closer.

“Hey, was that Draco I saw run by? Where’s Narcissa?”

“Not coming, apparently. It seems she sent him with their elf instead of dropping him off herself.”

“Oh, well, I guess one less person to feed?”

“Remus, he’s four. Is this really appropriate?”

Remus shrugged, “I mean, I don’t see why it wouldn’t be. Their elf has to follow Narcissa’s direction and if he dropped Draco off then the elf wouldn’t have left until they saw Draco get to the adults at the party. If it bothers you, you could ask her about it next time you see her.”

“Yeah, maybe…” James trailed off as he caught sight of two more people making their way up the drive toward the party. 

He heard Remus snort as he caught sight of Dumbledore and Minerva’s outfits. They looked as if they had dressed themselves in the dark. Minerva was wearing a long purple dress and an orange coverall over top; she must have been sweltering in the heat; while Dumbledore was wearing a pair of green pinstriped trousers with a paisley purple shirt and a messenger’s hat. Honestly, James was surprised they had managed to dress so absurdly. 

"Hello Albus, Minerva. Thank you for coming," Remus said as the pair walked closer.

"Thank you for inviting us Remus, James," Dumbledore said as he inclined his head.

"Remus, I was pleased to hear that you will be joining the staff at Hogwarts this fall. We're in desperate need for new perspectives on the staff. Congratulations," Minerva added. 

"Thank you, Minerva. I'm looking forward to September."

As James was about to show the new guests to the party tent, he heard Harry shout from the bounce house, "Nana Minnie!" 

He watched as the small boy stumbled out of the bounce house and ran over to Minerva before engulfing her in a tight hug. If James hadn’t been paying enough attention, he might have missed the small smile that graced the professor’s face. 

After hugging Minerva, Harry pulled her over to meet all of his new friends. Minerva politely said hello to all of the children and listened to them.

Soon the children ran off together to play a game with the slip n’ slide. Minerva made her way back to the adults where everyone made conversation with each other. 

As the day drew on everyone ate their fill and enjoyed the general company at Harry’s party. When cake was served everyone gathered around and sang to Harry for the first time in his memory. As he looked around him, he couldn’t help but smile at how many people, how many friends and family members, he gained by leaving the Dursleys’ house. A small part of him was sad that Dudley hadn’t come, but Harry knew it was for the best. He watched Draco and Hermione discussing a book they had both read while cake was being served and Harry smiled. He knew his two friends were extremely intelligent even at 4 and 5 years old and he was happy that they were getting along. He watched as Ron and Neville were discussing quidditch teams and Ginny was laughing with the twins, probably plotting some new prank. And he looked at Jean who was now sitting with Rick who had arrived shortly after lunch was served. 

“Harry,” Hermione interrupted his thoughts, “Want to go play on the castle again? We all want to race!” 

“Yeah!” Harry shouted as he got up from his chair and ran towards the bounce house. 

He looked back at the adults sitting around the table laughing and talking in the sunlight and towards his friends racing toward the castle and smiled. It couldn’t have been a more perfect day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus ends Harry's *first* year with the Marauders. I say first because it's not really a full year but from here until his first year at Hogwarts I will be doing more fastfowarding through his childhood. I will take time to focus on some events that influence plot, but for the majority of the chapters they will be descriptions and snips of larger chunks of time. Once I get into his first year I will do more focused chapters like I did until chapter 24. I'm excited to start getting into deeper topics and exploring my character development as well as plot changes and similarities. 
> 
> As always, thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review! Your reviews keep me going and remind me that I'm not writing just for myself. Thank you to those of you who have read from the beginning and stayed with me through the first part of this story, I can't wait to continue reading your reviews and reactions!


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four: Another Year Gone

Chapter Twenty-Four: Another Year Gone

James,

It’s official; I sold my flat. I’m not sure how I feel about it but it’s done. I agree with you that it’s more prudent that I have a secluded property to be able to transform at and I think I’ve found the perfect space. It’s out in the woods and comes with several acers of land. I think I’m going to renovate it so that it has a secured basement holding area and put up protection charms and repelling charms and the like. 

Do you think Sirius could help me make the property unplottable? I know his father’s house has similar protections to what I’m looking for. I also want to put up muggle repelling charms and the like so that no one happens to wander onto the property. 

I’ve been researching into some of these ancient spells I came across while doing my research and I think I’m on to something novel. I don’t want to tell you about it until I’ve completely figured it out but I think it could revolutionize how we as a society will be able to contain prisoners and werewolves during their transformations. 

The first week of school has gone smoothly. My third years seem excited with my lesson plans and it’s been a seamless transition for the older classes. Those that elected not to take the advanced course are scheduled into a class of my design so they can still sit their N.E.W.T.s in ancient runes while not being designed for those looking to enter into a career requiring rune translation or looking to take their A.C.C.E.N.T. certification (or Ancient Civilization Communication Examination and Nonverbal Terminology). I did decide to have one of the 7th year students looking to take their A.C.C.E.N.T. certification work as my research assistant. I’ve chosen a promising 7th year named Ashley Azolynn; she’s been extremely efficient in sorting through documents for me. She’s hoping to work as a curse breaker after graduating Hogwarts. If you happen to hear of any one at Gringotts that she can contact about that career, can you let me know? 

How has Harry been? Did you decide to sign him up for muggle dueling? Can’t wait to go to his match on Saturday. 

Remus

~ID~

Sirius,

I decided to buy that property I told you about. Do you think you could help me put up wards around it similar to those at Grimmauld Place? I’m hoping to have it fully renovated by Christmas break so I can utilize it for my transformations. 

How has studying for the Auror exam been going? Have you taken it?

Write back soon.

Remus

~ID~

Jean,

I hope my letter finds you well. I’ve been settling into work as a professor more smoothly than I thought I would. The other professors have been not only accepting of me but also kind and helpful. Our professor of medicine research has been assisting me with obtaining my prescription for my migraines; hopefully I notice a difference this month. It’ll be nice to have some relief from this chronic issue.

How has Hermione been adjusting to her new school? Has she liked having Harry in classes with her? James is thinking about having Harry participate in Tai Quan Dao this year. I think it will do Harry some good to participate in such a physical activity. 

How have you and Rick been? Any news in the romance department? If not, I’m sure he’ll wise up soon. He can’t keep his feelings in forever. 

I need to get back to my research now. I’ll write again soon.

All my love,   
Remus

~ID~

Moony,

YOU’RE A MOTHER FUCKING PROFESSOR! Yes! 

Ok, now that I have that out of my system, I’m glad you found some property. Of course I’ll help you ward it! I just wish there was a way to make sure you could get off the property. Do you think we could build some kind of bubble or dome to do that?? That would be so SICK. Anyway, let me know when you can come out to do it with me. It’s best if the owner uses their own magic to protect the property, but I can add my own to it, too. 

The auror exams have been…not going. I haven’t been able to study for them. Things have been different here without you. Maybe I’ll get to studying eventually. Right now I’ve been enjoying some time at the pub down the street with all those lovely birds that hang around. You’ll have to come with me sometime; I’m sure we could find you a lovely lady or a handsome lad! No judgement here. 

Till next time.  
Padfoot

~ID~

Snuffles,

I really don’t need you too hook me up with anyone at the moment. I’m more than capable of finding someone on my own, thanks. 

So, it’s funny you mention keeping me on the property. I’ve been translating an ancient tablet that contains some modifications to what we know as the modern day shield charm. It looks like these modifications will, essentially, reverse the charm. Meaning, instead of keeping something out or at bay, it would keep someone, or something, IN. The incantation is Ogetorp (oh-get-OR-P). If I’m correct, and with some modifications, we might be able to cast this charm to stay permanently around the property so that they only access is by floo. If we can, we wouldn’t have to worry about my furry problem hurting anyone else. Flitwick said he would meet with me to discuss my findings and see if we can work on the charm to do what we want. This is all extremely exciting research! With modifications, I wonder if we could create temporary, portable prisons for the magical law enforcement and auror offices at the Ministry!

Why don’t we get together next Saturday? 

Remus

~ID~

Moony, 

All of that is so exciting. Harry says he misses you lots and wants to know when he can come to Hogwarts to visit you and Minnie. 

Wait, why am I even responding to your letter? I just saw you yesterday at Harry’s match. Whatever. 

Anyway, I did sign him up for that muggle dueling you told me about. Funnily enough, Jean decided to sign Hermione up as well! Harry’s excited for his first lesson tomorrow. He’s working on his reading skills and something called sight words? right now. He’s been reading up a storm here; I don’t have enough kids books to keep him occupied! I took him to the muggle bookstore so he could pick out a few more to keep him satisfied but I’m going to have to figure out a way to keep him in new books without spending a small fortune doing it.

See you next week. 

Prongs

~ID~

Rem,

I’m so happy you mailed me. I decided to sign Hermione up for Tai Quan Dao with Harry at the center in the mall. She’s so excited to learn self-defense she can’t sit still. 

Hermione misses you and wishes you were here so you two could talk about all the books her and Harry have been reading. You should see these two; I’ve never met children as into reading as they are. I’m honestly surprised that Harry has surpassed Hermione in reading skills. She’s not overly happy about that and has been working twice as hard to catch up with him. 

Rick has been…Rick. I’ve been hinting to him that I’m interested but you know how he is; thicker than a tree. Are you even sure that he likes me? I hate getting my hopes up if I find out that you were wrong or I misinterpreted something. Any advice? Maybe I just need to seduce him one night when Hermione is visiting her grandparents. 

Please write again soon, Rem. I miss my best friend. 

All my love,  
Jean

~ID~

Uncle Moony,

I learn to write! I miss you. When can you see me? I visit you soon? 

Love,  
Harry

~ID~

Bucky,

I’ll see you very soon! Remember, I’m coming to all of your quidditch matches. Congratulations on making seeker! I told you that you’d be a natural. Maybe your dad will let you come visit me and Nana at Hogwarts soon. 

Love,  
Uncle Moony

~ID~

Moonliman,

Are you sure I can’t convince you to come out and get a shag with me? I’m telling you, it’s quite satisfying! 

That charm sounds perfect! Let me know what Flitwick says and we can test it out on the property. We might need Dumbledore or James to come assist us since the property is so large. 

Can you send me your recipe for the dreamless sleep drought? The one from James’ potion book tastes awful and…the nightmares are back. I—I haven’t been able to sleep again. But, don’t worry about me. I can handle this. 

Yours,  
The most handsome man

~ID~

Prongs,

I’m glad Harry’s been doing well in school these last couple of months! How has work been? I’ve been follow Portree in the running for the world cup! Do you think you’ll make it this year? 

See you for dinner Sunday.

Remus

~ID~

Snuffleupagus,

The most handsome man? I didn’t realize I had written a letter to myself. Talk about conceited, Padfoot! 

Are you sure you’re ok? Do you want me to come home earlier this weekend and we can talk? Is it the one about Orion? 

I enclosed my recipe but, really, you could just add some mint or chocolate to the regular one and have the same results.

Yours,  
Moon of everyone’s lives 

~ID~

Jean,

How have Hermione and Harry been enjoying their self-defense lessons? James told me Harry has been doing well. And how about school? 

So, remember how I told you about that gentleman who I went to school with? Snivellus? You wouldn’t believe it but he’s a professor here, too! I went to get my medication and I found out he is our medicine professor. Is Dumbledore insane? This man is a bully and that’s putting it nicely. Honestly, it’s taking all of my restraint to not prank him or anything of the sort. It’s so tempting to put some bleach in his shampoo…wait, what am I saying? Severus doesn’t use shampoo! The greasy git. 

I’m making so much headway in my research. Hopefully we can talk about it when I visit in a few weeks.

As for Rick; I think he’d have a heart attack if you seduced him so maybe that should be your last resort option! Have you tried just telling him? From what I remember, Rick can be sort of—oblivious to things. 

Write back soon,  
Remus

~ID~

Moony,

I’m sure you’ve read that Portree is out of the running for the world cup, but we gave it our all! I was just excited to finally be a starting player this season. We’ve already begun strategizing for next year. I think in a few years we’ll have a real shot at the cup. 

Isn’t it exciting that Harry’s little league team won their championship? His coach decided to have a pizza party for the kids in Diagon Alley and family is invited. He wanted to make sure you were coming. 

Thanks for the tip about the muggle library. It’s been a lifesaver in getting Harry new reading materials. Did I tell you he loaned Hermione a copy of Beetle? She loved the book and didn’t want to give it back. I had to come up with an explanation as to why Jean couldn’t find a copy in the bookstore. I got Hermione a copy and told Jean that the author was some no name from abroad. I think she bought it? I had to give Harry a very stern talking to about the Statute of Secrecy and how Hermione or Jean could have found out about the wizarding world by doing this. He has some belief that Hermione is a witch and that’s why he’s did it. I’ve been observing her but haven’t witnessed any indication that she’s a muggle born witch. I think he’s just hoping so much that she is and imagining what he wants to see. 

Oh! What’s even better is that Harry and Hermione have been teaching Ron and Draco all of their muggle self-defense moves! Molly and Arthur don’t particularly care one way or the other but Narcissa has been in a right state over Draco learning to muggle duel. Apparently it’s “not becoming of a future lord and pureblood.” Whatever that means. She’s been letting it go and still letting him visit though. I think because Draco has been enjoying learning from Harry. I think Harry’s been a good influence on Draco. He and Hermione have become quick friends. The four of them have been nearly inseparable the last few months. 

Sirius told me the renovations to your property are done! I went over and took a look. It looks awesome. Adding in a bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom was a brilliant idea. This way you can eat once you change back and go sleep without having to travel. And that new spell you used on the property to keep yourself in is ingenious! Have you submitted it to the ministry to have it made an official spell? You should, I think it would be useful. 

I’ve been researching all those options Dumbledore told me about Voldemort. I’ve found a few more viable options we can go over the next time you’re home. I think I’ve ruled out a philosopher’s stone at this point. Without a body, would he even be able to drink the elixir if he had created one? Dumbledore seemed to agree with me on this. Apparently he has a meeting scheduled with some guy in Azkaban who killed a few muggles a decade or two ago. I’m hoping this meeting sheds some light on which direction we need to research. Have you found any more information on Horcruxes yet? Let me know.

See you soon,  
James

~ID~

Padfoot,

Why haven’t you Owled me back? I’m getting worried about you. 

Remus

~ID~

James,

I highly doubt Hermione is a muggle born witch. Jean or I would have noticed some peculiarities involving her by now. I’m sure it’s just Harry’s imagination. I think you handled the situation appropriately. 

How has Harry’s defense lessons been going? I heard Hermione has been doing extremely well. Jean says their instructor wants her to spar when she’s older because she’s doing so well!

I’ve been doing research into Horcruxes and those potions like you asked and I think I found some information. It looks like an Egyptian Pharaoh hundreds of years ago had dabbled in Horcruxes. He never succeeded in making one, but he did work on and advance the spell and potion needed. I’ve enclosed my translations and research in this letter for you. 

Have you talked to Sirius lately? He told me those nightmares were back, but now he’s refusing my letters. I’m worried about him. Can you try to talk to him?

Thanks.  
Remus

~ID~

As Remus sat in his office at Hogwarts contemplating the events of the last year, he sliced open the letter he had just received that James had forwarded to him from Potter Manner. He read the letter over his desk where several books and documents spread out related to his translation of an ancient Mayan text he believed might indicate the next direction his lycanthrope research should go. He smiled as he recognized Jean’s handwriting in the document. 

Rem,

I was so excited to receive your letter in the mail today. I’m happy your first year teaching has gone as well as it has. I can’t believe the school year is already over; we’ll have to go to the pub when you come back. 

Things haven’t changed much here. Rick is still being Rick despite all of the hints I’ve been dropping. Maybe some day he’ll figure things out. 

Hermione has been excelling in her school work and at Tai Quan Dao with Harry. I think this new extracurricular has been influencing her to be more outgoing. You wouldn’t believe what she’s been doing! I’ve noticed she’s started climbing up the bookcase in the living room to get to the books on the top shelf! Of course, I can’t ever catch her doing it, so I haven’t been able to properly punish her for it. I’m happy she’s become so outgoing and unafraid, but climbing up there really isn’t safe. And I think Sirius or Rick have been sneaking her sweets! I keep finding empty sweets wrappers in her room but she won’t tell me where they came from. I have no idea, but I’ll get to the bottom of it!

I miss you, Rem. I miss having you here, to be able to talk to you about everything and not having to wait on the post. Hermione and I might be moving soon. Now that I’ve completed my schooling I’ve been applying for positions and I’m worried I’ll have to move to find a job. I’m hoping it won’t be far. I’d miss you, James, and Sirius too much at this point. As annoying as the three of you are, you’ve become like a second family to Hermione and I. 

Hurry home, Remus, so I can have my two best friends back. 

All my love,  
Jean

Remus smiled. He would only be at Hogwarts for a few more days before the professors got to head home but he decided to write her a letter anyway. Maybe it would get to her before he did.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five: Inner Demons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS MODERATELY GRAPHIC SCENES AND CONTENT THAT PORTRAY ISSUES OF PHYSICAL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE CONTINUOUSLY THROUGHOUT. IF THESE THEMES WILL CAUSE YOU DISTRESS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REFRAIN FROM READING THIS CHAPTER.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Inner Demons

James stood outside of Sirius’ door a few weeks after the end of the school year and shuffled his feet as he waited for Remus to finish saying goodnight to Harry. They had both been suspecting that something was wrong with Sirius but now it was time to finally confront him about it. 

They both suspected that his time at Azkaban had taken its toll on Sirius. They wondered if it had even exacerbated his memories from living with his parents. Remus didn’t know much about the full extent of Sirius’ childhood, and James couldn’t claim he knew everything, but James remembered the day that Sirius showed up on the doorstep of Potter Manner and asked his parents if he could stay for the summer. James will never forget the dark bruises on Sirius’ skin or the burns on his inner thighs. He had tried hard to let it go and give Sirius his space, but Sirius needed medical attention. Eventually, James had told his mother and she had taken Sirius to St. Mungos for the injuries. Sirius told the healer that he had gotten into a muggle duel with another kid from school, but James knew that was a lie. 

It had taken James several weeks after the fact to finally get Sirius to admit that Orion had caused his injuries during one of his lessons. James knew that Orion insisted that Sirius and Regulus attend home schooling lessons but not what those lessons contained. After that day, James suspected that it had something to do with dark magic even if Sirius never fully admitted it. 

James looked up as Remus rounded the corner. He gave his friend a half-hearted, sad smile. Remus looked slightly frazzled with his hair ruffled up and his reading glasses askew. Remus quickly pulled his glasses off and put them into his pocket.

“Have you heard anything from inside his room?”

“No. I think he might be sleeping again. But we need to talk about this. He’s not ok and we need to make sure he knows we’re here for him.”

Remus nodded. James turned towards Sirius’ door, held up his fist, and hesitated before knocking sharply on the door.

“Sirius?” James called, “Sirius we need to talk to you. Can we come in?”

James and Remus looked at one another, “Maybe he isn’t here?” Remus asked.

“No, I asked Cirri and Gus; they said he hasn’t left the house in two days.”

Remus frowned and banged on the door again, shouting, “Sirius? Open the door before we break it down!” 

When Sirius didn’t answer, James shrugged and tried the door knob. He frowned when he found the door to be locked and attempted to open it with magic. When that failed, James simply magically blew the door open. Remus quickly ducked down and covered his head before the door burst open. 

James pushed the door completely open and made his way inside of Sirius’ room. 

Inside the room was so black that James and Remus had to light their wands to see and the sight before them caused the blood to drain from their faces. 

“Sirius!” 

~ID~

J,

I was happy to hear about your new job! I’m sorry you have to move for it, but, really, Sussex isn’t too far. I’m sure we could try to get Harry and Hermione together after the move. Plus, they can both read and write now. They can be pen pals for sure. And I know I’ll have to do some business out that way. A colleague of mine works in town and I often have to converse with him over my research. 

Things have been quite on my end. The new school year started back up about a month ago and I’ve finally chosen my research assistant for the year. He seems young but I’ve known Bill for about two years now and he’s quite capable and determined. He wants to be a historian like my last assistant and I was happy to take him on for at least this year if not until he graduates. So far he’s been really amazing with this work. He’s on time, conducts his research appropriately, and quickly. He also finds my topic of pandemic diseases interesting. Currently we’re researching the black plague and leprosy. You might remember Bill from Harry’s birthday party two months ago. Tall, long red hair in a ponytail, earring? He’s Ron and Ginny’s oldest brother. 

I’ve received word that Sirius was finally moved out of the critical ward and into a recovery and addiction facility in the hospital. We’re hoping he’s not there for too long but he can’t get released until he makes progress in his therapy. The doctors said he needs to deal with the abuse he’s suffered from his childhood and his time in prison. I—I didn’t realize the severity of the abuse he sustained from his father. I…didn’t realize that Orion was anything besides emotionally abusive. I’m glad you didn’t have to see the scars…they were everywhere, Jean. It’s no wonder we found him in such a state. I can’t—sometimes I see him like that, on the floor, when I close my eyes or try to go to sleep. I’d thought I’d lost another friend, J. I can’t wait for him to get home. 

Have you heard from Rick, yet? You mentioned the other weekend that he’s been avoiding you. He didn’t mention any issues when he talked to me last. And how’s Hermione? James mentioned that she and Harry have been doing well in primary school. Has she liked it there so far? 

Can’t wait to see you again.

Remus

~ID~

Uncle Moony,

Dad wants me to choose a language to learn. He thinks I should learn Spanish or Gobbledygook, but I kind of want to learn gnome or Mermish. I know I probably won’t ever use them, but I think they’d be fun to learn about. He already said I have to learn Latin, whatever that is. He said it’s a dead language. Well, if it’s dead, why do I have to learn it?

Uncle Sirius is doing better. Dad says he’ll get to come home from St. Mungos soon. I really miss him. We’ve been visiting all the time. I also get to spend more time with Ron and Ginny because Uncle Sirius can’t keep an eye on me dad says. Ron and I have been flying on brooms. Ron won’t let Ginny fly with us though. I don’t know why because when she and I get to go fly she’s even better on a broom than Ron, Fred, or George! We snuck away from Ron and sat by the pond. She told me that she breaks into the broom shed to practice flying because her mom and brothers won’t let her do it. I think Mr. Weasley knows, though. Mrs. Weasley has no idea—she thinks Ginny sits around and reads or sews all day. Honestly, I’ve never seen Ginny pick up a needle in my life. I think she magics her sewing together but I can’t prove it.

Speaking of magic, dad’s had me practicing ele—elem—fire and stuff spells. It’s been really fun! Dad says most wizard parents don’t teach that anymore but that I should learn it. When I was at Ron’s the other day Ginny talked me into using it to make some water fly at Fred and George. Apparently they hid her quidditch book and she wasn’t happy about it. 

You’re coming to my match this weekend, right? It’s the semifinals and I’m starting seeker! Ask Nana if she’ll come too! 

Love and miss you!

Bucky

~ID~

Remus leaned back as he sat behind his desk, his quill in his hand dripping ink on his pants as he thought. He hadn’t heard from Sirius since the day he and James had found him in his room, lying on the floor. That day had continuously haunted Remus even though it had been so long ago now. If he concentrated or, more likely, couldn’t stop thinking about it, he could still see Sirius passed out face down in his own sick with dozens of empty bottles surrounded his body. He can still remember the cold, blood-stopping fear of realizing that Sirius wasn’t breathing anymore. 

“Remus!” James shouted as he ran over to Sirius, “Remus he—he isn’t breathing! Help me!”

Remus continued to stare at James and Sirius, unmoving, breathless and bloodless. 

James looked up, fear in his unusually dark eyes, “Remus,” he cried, “Remus help!” 

“Sirius,” Remus breathed, “What—”

Remus looked around the room again, his eyes traveling over the dozens of liquor bottles that littered his bedroom floor. His eyes lingering on the shattered remains of several bottles against the far wall. His nose filled with the smell of regurgitated rum. 

James had managed to roll Sirius over, pulling his face out of the puddle, and pull him into his arms. 

“Remus, we need to get him to St. Mungos! There’s something seriously wrong.”

There was a knock on Remus’ office door and he started with a jump, the ink on his quill spattering the desk. 

He sighed and put his quill back into the ink pot and called, “Come in.”

Bill Weasley cracked the door open and peeked into the office, “Professor Lupin? I have that translation you had wanted. Do you want me to give it to you now or during our next meeting?”

“Oh, yes,” Remus said as his mind came back to the present, “Whichever. If you have it with you, I’ll take it now. If not, you can bring it on Thursday to our regular meeting.”

Bill nodded and stepped into the office, “I have it here. Let me know what you want me to work on next, Professor!”

“Yes. I’ll have another assignment for you on Thursday. Have a nice night, Bill, and make sure to relax some. You’ve been working so hard already this year and with your O.W.L.’s coming you need every break you can get.”

“No can do, Professor. I have prefect duties tonight,” Bill said, smiling and proudly indicating his badge.

“Right, right. I forgot Professor Dumbledore was considering you. He had asked for my opinion of you. I’m glad you received the position; there’s no finer 5th year student.”

“Thank you, Professor Lupin! But I have to head out now. See you Thursday!”

Remus waived as Bill turned on his heel and quietly closed his office door. Once the door was shut Remus let his hand fall to the desk. He glanced down at the letter he had begun writing to James; it was covered in ink splotches now. Remus sighed and waived his wand, clearing the parchment of the splotches and continued working on the letter. He wanted to send it this evening if he could. 

Prongs,

Do you think you could send me that copy of Runes of the Ancient I left in the library? I need it by tomorrow but I don’t have time to pop over for it. I would greatly appreciate it! 

Did you decide what Harry’s next training will be? I found some books on children’s wandless and elemental magic at the school library. I’m sure Dumbledore wouldn’t mind if I borrowed them so you could make a copy. Or we could just buy a copy from Flourish and Blotts. 

How is Sirius doing? I just—I haven’t been able to stop thinking about finding him like that in his room. I had no idea he was drinking that much or how he was hiding it from us. To think we almost lost him to something as mundane as alcohol poisoning. Harry owled me and said he was getting discharged from the addiction center at St. Mungos soon? Do we know an exact date? We should have a small, family get together. 

And if you want my input on languages, I think you ought to let Harry choose the other language he learns. It’ll motivate him more to learn and retain the information. And I think I have a colleague who speaks Mermish…or Dumbledore could teach him. I’ve heard he speaks it. 

How has his elemental magic training going? Harry seems to have some good control over the elements. 

See you this weekend.

Moony

~ID~

Rem,

I can’t believe it’s already after Christmas! I’m sorry I haven’t been able to write to you before this, so much has been going on here. 

First off, I’m so sorry to hear about Sirius. I’m glad he’s going better. It sounds like he’s had a lot of demons to deal with…I didn’t realize the level of abuse he’d suffered from his parents. But, of course, he’s your good friend and if you didn’t know there isn’t any reason that I’d know. I’m glad he’s coming home soon! Is there any update on that?

As for Rick…oh, Rem, it was the most spontaneous and surprising situation! I took your advice and I just—I went for it, Rem! I was so tired of waiting around for Rick to admit or deny his feelings that I just grabbed him and I kissed him. And the look on his face—I wish I had taken a photo! And, for a moment, I thought I had royally screwed up and lost a friend. But then he grabbed me by the shoulders and he said he wasn’t going to wait for me to realize I’d made a mistake before doing that again and he kissed me back! 

We’ve been officially dating since the beginning of November and I couldn’t be happier. I love him more now than I ever did and Hermione is so happy that he’s around more now than ever. We’ve been talking about getting married soon and I want to make sure you, James, Sirius, and Harry can be there. It would mean so much to Hermione if you all could. And to me, Rem. Other than Rick you’re my best friend and I miss you guys like crazy since we had to move away. 

Rick has been talking about formally adopting Hermione. I’ll be honest, that’s not something I thought was ever going to be possible. With everything that happened with her biological father, I never imagined I would meet anyone I trusted enough to be in her life that way. I don’t even know how to go about getting that paperwork settled or getting him to sign anything as I have no idea where in the world he went. It could be years before we can track him down. But maybe we won’t need his signature. I don’t know if I ever told you what happened between him and I. He—he wasn’t a great person. 

He and I started out good, we were happy and he treated me well. He bought me jewelry and encouraged me in my studies and I fell in love. And then I found out I was pregnant and it was like—he became a totally different person. He decided that since I was pregnant with his child I was now his property or something ridiculous like that. He completely cut me off money wise. He gave me a debit card which he only uploaded a set amount to a week. It wasn’t enough to keep up with my tuition so I had to put it on hold. I took an entire year off because of him. 

Eventually it became physical. It started slowly. He would punch the wall where my head was during a rage or an argument and then he would smooth talk me, be incredibly sweet and apologetic and, it was an accident, right? Or maybe it was my fault for pissing him off so much? I mean, he took care of me financially and I was carrying his child; of course he loved me! But then the wall turned into my face. I remember the first time…I had made his favorite meal for dinner; spaghetti bolognaise with garlic butter bread. But I accidentally over cooked the pasta and burned the bread because I had to use the bathroom. At that point I was six months pregnant and peeing all the freaking time, and I couldn’t help it. It was only in for a few minutes extra but it wasn’t salvageable. So, he punched me. But I thought I deserved it; I mean, I ruined his favorite meal! 

Eventually I realized what he was doing. The kind words, the manipulation, the control over money and purchases—I couldn’t take it anymore. I ran. Somehow, I’m still not sure how, I managed to get Hermione out. She was barely four months old…I went to my parents house and they convinced me to file police reports and to get restraining orders for Hermione and I. It wasn’t until she was one that the court gave me protection and sole custody of Hermione. Apparently judges don’t like people who physically attack pregnant women and infants. 

But I don’t know how all of that will play out if we decide to have Rick adopt Hermione. I guess I’ll keep you posted on that front.

Anyway, this turned out to be a really long letter. I’m sorry for putting all of this on you with Sirius still in the hospital. I guess my biggest point here was to tell you to let him know that if he needs to talk to someone who understands, I’m always available to talk to a fellow survivor. 

Love always,  
J

~ID~

J,

I wish you were here. The school year is quickly coming to a close and I’ve been living between the school and the Manner now that Sirius is home. He’s in such a fragile state that James and I are afraid to leave him alone for any extended period of time.

We’ve been making sure Sirius is getting to his therapy appointments. He seems to be doing much better but he’s not quite back to his usual self. He’s definitely been going out less than he used to and seems to have given up drinking for good. Harry has been especially clingy with Sirius. Most of the time he refuses to leave Sirius’ side. 

So, have you and Rick set a date yet? We were all so excited to receive your engagement announcement in the mail! Harry wanted to know if he could bring Ginny to the wedding; apparently she’s been missing Hermione something fierce since you two moved. 

Have you decided to let Rick officially adopt her yet? If you want my opinion, I think it might be a good idea. Wouldn’t that prevent her bio dad from suddenly reappearing now that the restraining order has expired? Either way I’ll support you. 

Can’t wait to see you in a few weeks!

Truly,  
Rem

As Remus finished writing his letting to Jean he looked up and glanced around. 

The living room was full of people this evening as James’ quidditch team had made it into the finals for the world cup. They had invited the entire team over for dinner and drinks and Harry had decided to invite the Weasleys for the festivities. Even Sirius was joining in and playing games with the kids and talking pranks with Fred and George. As he looked around the warm room, he smiled as he realized that things were only going to get better.


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six: My God, That Ass

Chapter Twenty-Seven: My God, That Ass

Harry had had an exciting seventh birthday party. He had been allowed to invite all of his friends, excluding Hermione who had now moved across the country, to his house for a quidditch themed party including an appearance from the team members of Pride of Portree. Harry had been exceptionally excited to have an interactive quidditch lesson from professional quidditch players. 

It had taken a significant amount of convincing on James and Remus’ parts to get Mrs. Weasley to permit Ginny to participate in the active lesson. Mrs. Weasley had been absolutely against her daughter not only riding on a broom but being allowed to rough house with the boys a hundred feet or more in the air. Mrs. Weasley was an extremely progressive person in terms of accepting people for who they are and all sorts of things, but when it came to her daughter she seemed to refuse to accept the fact that Ginny was more of a tom boy than any of her other brothers. She also refused to accept the fact that her daughter was a natural on a broom. When Harry suggested a race between himself, Ron, Fred, George, and Draco, Mrs. Weasley nearly fainted when Ginny demanded to be allowed to race as well. It was only the look of horror on her son’s faces when she began to deny Ginny that right that ultimately changed her mind. 

In the end, Ginny barely missed first place by a hair as Draco outflew everyone. While Harry had skill on a broomstick in the sense that he was nimble and creative, he lacked the skills necessary to outfly people in a race. He wasn’t put out, however, simply more determined to learn how to be faster and the tricks needed to win for the next time. 

Draco and Ginny formed an unlikely friendship that day. After nearly out flying him, Ginny had peppered Draco with questions about quidditch and flying and the like. Draco had initially been embarrassed but pleased to be the center of attention and answered her questions with vigor. After a while he came to expect Ginny’s unyielding company and began watching out for the six-year-old subconsciously. 

Minerva and Dumbledore had been in attendance once again; Harry couldn’t imagine a birthday party where his Nana wasn’t invited. They had mingled cheerfully with the rest of the adults who had joined the party while enjoying Sirius’ barbeque. This year, the Marauders had opted to go alcohol free for the gathering in an effort to make Sirius feel more comfortable in the group. 

It wasn’t long after his birthday that Remus and Harry had to go back to school for the year and they quickly settled back into their regular routines. 

~ID~

Ginny,

I’ve been trying to get Mother to allow me to visit so we can fly again but Father won’t give his permission for me to visit The Burrow. I don’t understand why my Father continues to believe your family is scum, you’ve always been kind to me. He continuously tells me that your family is undesirable and a disgrace to wizarding kind. It’s so hard to not just believe what he has to say…Blaise and Ted—well, Blaise’s mother is basically absentee, but Ted’s father, he pushes the idea of blood status even more so than my father. Ted—sometimes it’s hard to reason with him about these things. He’s never met anyone who wasn’t a pure blood, you know? And his dad is still a huge You-Know-Who supporter. I know my father was a follower, but Thaddeus Nott was one of the original Death Eaters. I still don’t know how he got off on charges. I think Father told me he claimed he was cursed or something. 

He’s had me doing my lessons again now that it’s fall. This month I’ve been rereading the Sacred 28 and learning the histories of the pure blood families of Britain as well as working on my Latin and French. Mother has had me on a strict schedule ever since I brought some of Fred’s Zonko’s products home. She was NOT pleased with me when she found the everlasting, no fire start fireworks. She swore I would take my eye out and how dare he give me such a dangerous object. But she’s been leaving in some time for friends every day—that is, if you constitute a half an hour a day “free time”. Father will only allow Ted and Blaise to visit the Manner. Well, he was allowing Goyle and Crabbe as well but, really, I’ve told you what they’re like. Dumb as trolls that lot. They don’t smell much better, either. 

How have you been doing since Bill and Charlie left for school? I bet you’re right bored over there. Or is Mrs. Weasley making you learn to bake bread again? 

Please write soon. I’m dreadfully bored. 

Draco

~ID~

Ron and Ginny,

Dad wants to know if you guys want to go to the next Portree game! Say yes, please??? He got tickets for the top box and they’re playing the Holyhead Harpies! It’s going to be the game of the year other than the quidditch world cup. He says you guys can stay over for the night, too. I’ve already owled Draco asking if he can go. I didn’t mention you were invited so hopefully his dad lets him come. 

Let me know!

Harry

~ID~

Albus,

In my spare time I’ve been researching those options that we discussed a few years back and I think I may have stumbled onto something. I’ve sent it to Remus for translation because it was written in Runes. This document was ancient; and I mean old. From what I could decipher, it had something to do with Horcruxes. I’ve told him to owl us both once he’s completed the work so we can discuss the findings. 

Were you able to secure that memory from Morfin Gaunt we had discussed after Harry’s party? I think being able to view why and how he killed Voldemort’s muggle family is going to be immeasurably insightful into his history and eventual ascent to power. 

Write soon.  
James

~ID~

Padfoot,

Do you remember your younger cousin, Nymphadora Tonks? She’s in my third year Ancient Runes class this year and she’s—I suppose “quite the character” is the term I should use? Did you know she’s a metamorphmagus? I came into class today and found Dumbledore lecturing in my stead about proper pranking technique. While that should have been indicative of an impersonator in and of itself, I had also just happened to be leaving a meeting with him just prior to my class and knew for a fact that he was headed out to visit Hagrid for a cup of tea. I mean, I had to give her a detention. You can’t impersonate the headmaster! But, man, that was a bloody brilliant prank. I haven’t decided on a detention yet but I’m thinking lines or assisting me in some translations. I just don’t feel right punishing her. 

Anyway, see you this weekend for dinner. 

Moony

~ID~

Uncle Moony,

When you come home this weekend can you help me with the Latin work dad gave me? I still can’t believe he’s making me learn a dead language. It has no purpose anymore. Why do I have to learn all of this stuff? 

Also, dad said he would let me learn to fence! He’s hired an instructor for me who will let me learn real sword fighting if I get good enough! Isn’t that cool? You’ll come to my competitions, right?

Oh and I have your update on Uncle Sirius. Dad had a shed built outside for him to store his motorcycle and he’s been spending every day outside working on the bike. Well, he says he has been, but I haven’t gone out to check. Dad won’t let him take me for a ride on the bike but it looks so cool! Do you think you could change his mind? Uncle Sirius said he would take me if dad said it was ok! Please? 

See you soon!

Bucky

~ID~

Golden Dragon,

The quidditch game was so much fun! I’m glad your dad let you go. I don’t understand what his problem with you having proper friends is. I mean, honestly, Harry, Ron, and I are much better friends than Crabbe and Goyle from what you’ve told me. They sound like dummies. I was thinking. What if you told your mom that you were going to Harry’s house BUT you came to the Burrow instead? I’m sure Dobby would bring you where you told him to! And you could tell him not to tell your parents where you really went. I bet that would work. And when you got here we could go flying; maybe you could show me that move you were talking about at the game. 

Oh! And I finally got the quaffle to go where I wanted it to! Well…without falling off the broom. You should have seen it! It was brilliant. 

I hope you come. It’s been quiet at home since Bill and Charlie left. Ron, Fred and George won’t let me play with them and mom makes me cook and do the laundry all the time. She’s been having me work on my maths—why do I need to know how to do math? 

Anyway, did you want to do another book trade? I loved reading the last one you gave me. How did you manage to get ahold of a muggle book if your dad hates them? 

Well, let me know about the plan! Miss you!

The Flame

~ID~

Hermione, 

I hope you get this letter—Harry said he could pass it along for me since I couldn’t get to the post office. Thank you for sending me The Indian In the Cupboard. I really enjoyed the book; I couldn’t put it down! I hope you don’t mind but I passed it along to Ginny. I didn’t realize how much of an avid reader she is—I think she finished the book faster than I did. Anyway, I’ve put one of my books in the package. It’s one of my favorites. It’s called Hatchet. It’s by an American author and all but it was really good. I think it may end up being a classic. You can keep this copy, it’s my spare. And I bought one for Ginny. I felt bad because she can’t really get new things let alone new books. She was so happy. 

When will you be back in Scotland again? I know Lord Potter has already been planning Harry’s 8th birthday party. That man really likes planning a bash. You would have enjoyed his last one—we played this really cool game that Lord Potter made up and then his football team came and signed autographs and everything! Well, I guess none of that is really your style. But you would have enjoyed seeing everyone. 

How have you liked your new school? Have you started learning French yet? My father has me working on my Latin again this school year. But mother lets me read ancient Greek mythology in Latin for my lessons so they’re actually pretty interesting this year. Did you know how many children Zeus was rumored to have?! SO MANY. And the story of Persephone? I mean, who knew how dangerous pomegranate seeds can be! And her name? “Bringer of death” and she’s so—she created all of the ingenious punishments in the underworld. She was one crazy lady. I think you’d really enjoy reading about her. Actually, she reminds me of Ginny in some ways. 

Write back soon. I hope you like the book!

Draco

~ID~

Bucky,

I think you’ll find that learning Latin will be a huge benefit once you start at Hogwarts. The majority of the spells you’re going to learn while you’re there use the base language of Latin. I think you’ll find that knowing the language will help you pick up on how to use your spells properly more quickly than if you didn’t know it. 

Did you end up deciding on a second language? I know James had asked you last year to choose one but you hadn’t quite decided. I still think Mermish or Gobbledygook will be the most beneficial for you.

But the real reason I’m writing you back is because I’ve been thinking about James’ birthday. It’s coming up and I think this year we should do something bigger for him. With everything that’s been going on the last year, I think he could use the distraction. What do you think? 

How has Sirius been? He seemed more like his old self when I visited the other weekend. I’m glad he’s getting back to his normal, broody but lovable self. I’m happy you finally get to see him this way. 

Anyway, I’ll see you in a month for the Easter holiday. I won’t have time to come home before then because I’ll be writing the exams for my classes. 

Love and miss you, Bucky.

Uncle Moony

~ID~

Remus looked up from his book as he heard a knock on his door. He glanced down at his watch and noticed it was rather late, but not late enough it couldn’t have been a student. Curfew was still an hour away. He quickly marked his page and set his book aside before calling, “Come in,” to the person on the other side of the door. 

The door swung open and a teenage girl with violet hair, a nose ring, and an improperly worn uniform stepped into Remus’ office clutching what looked like an Ancient Runes dictionary and a long piece of parchment. She glanced around the office, her eyes traveling over the posters on Remus’ walls. She smiled when her eyes traveled across all the notes that Remus had scattered on the wall behind his desk. As she stepped forward her robes shifted and Remus caught sight of the fishnets she was wearing under her kilt. 

“Ms. Tonks. I will remind you as I always do that fishnet stockings are not approved uniform accompaniments. Not that those reminders ever do anything to convince you to forgo that article of clothing, but I digress. What can I do for you this evening?” 

Tonks smiled wickedly as she bent over the desk, the top buttons at the top of her blouse undone, “Well, Professor, I’m having some trouble translating what I want to say in this essay and I was hoping, maybe, you could help me?” 

“Of course. Is this for the assignment due Thursday?”

“Yeah, the one about the tomes in Egypt,” Tonks said as she sat on Remus’ desk, “I’m trying to say something about Cleopatra being a badar—er I mean, a really nifty chick.”

Remus frowned, “I’m happy to help you, Nymphadora, but I will need you to utilize one of the chairs I keep across from my desk rather than, you know, my desk. You’re getting ink on your kilt.”

Tonks blushed as her eyes darted down to her skirt as she noticed she had just sat on the document Remus had been taking notes on, right in the fresh ink. She quickly jumped down and tried to remove the ink from the yellow of her skirt, accomplishing in spreading the stain. 

“Damnit!” Tonks breathed as she tried desperately to remove the stain—the red in her cheeks deepening. She took a quick step back to get her skirt more into the light and tripped over the chair behind her, falling onto her ass and pulling her blouse further down her chest, revealing the top of her lacy bra. 

As Tonks was falling Remus had jumped up from his seat and vaulted over his desk to help pull Tonks back to her feet, “Are you ok?”

Tonks turned her face away from Remus, embarrassment on her face, “I’m so sorry. I think I can figure out this translation on my own.”

“Ms. Tonks, I’m more than happy to assist you,” Remus said as he removed the stain from her skirt, “Honestly, my office has looked worse than this.”

Tonks pulled herself away from Remus and gave him a quick, sad smile, “Really, it’s fine. I’ll see you in class Thursday.”

“Ms.—” Remus began but Tonks didn’t stop to listen. 

Remus barely saw her whip open his door and rush back out into the corridor. She left his office so quickly she accidently left her book and parchment behind. He sighed and bent down to pick them up and laid them across his desk. 

He picked his notes back up and attempted to look back over them but they weren’t making any sense to him at this point. Tonks’ distraction was still on his mind. Instead, he picked up the parchment she left behind and skimmed over it, planning on giving her some constructive notes on her assignment to assist her in completing it. He was extremely shocked to find that it didn’t contain her Ancient Runes homework but, rather, a poorly written poem. Remus’ hand dropped—he knew he shouldn’t read this; it was Tonks’ personal work. It wouldn’t be appropriate. But, then, he caught sight of his name and his curiosity overcame him. 

With his eyes gold as the sun,  
I can’t help but stare at his bum.  
He teaches my class,  
But my god, that ass,  
Remus Lupin, I bet you’d make me cum. 

Upon finishing the last line Remus’ face went white as a sheet and he slammed the parchment onto his desk and pushed it as far as he could away from himself. As he put his head into his hands there was another knock at his door. He didn’t even bother looking up at the doorway and simply waived his hand to beckon the person into the room. 

“Everything ok, Moony?” Sirius asked as he stepped into the office, “I just came to drop off that book you asked for. I passed by Tonks on my way in here, she looked pretty upset. Did you see what happened?”

Keeping his head down, Remus nodded and cautiously relayed what happened while Tonks was in his office before adding, “I think she might have a little…crush on me.”

Sirius let out a bark like laugh, “A crush? Little Nymphy? No way. What makes you think that?”

Remus eyed the parchment laying upside down on his desk, “Just—just a feeling from how she was speaking to me.”

Laughing, Sirius clapped Remus on the back, “Still got it, eh? I didn’t figure you liked younger women! Robbin’ that cradle, are you?”

Remus blushed, “Absolutely not. How could you even insinuate that I’d have a…relationship…with a student? That’s highly inappropriate.”

“And down right sexy. Thing of pornos to be made,” Sirius said as he wiggled his eyebrows. 

“She’s 14! There’s no way that would even be legal!” 

“Legal—shmegal. She can change into whatever you want her to look like!” 

“She’s your cousin!” Remus shouted back, appalled. 

“She’s your cousin!” Sirius mimicked in a high voice, “So what? You’re a great guy and this is just some silly crush. She’ll get over it, Moony. But, I mean, she has good taste. Have you seen your ass? You’re fit.”

“Oh, well, thank you?” Remus asked tentatively. 

Sirius let out another bark like laugh before handing Remus the book in his hand, “Anyway, James told me to invite you to dinner this weekend. He says you need to take a break from writing exams. You haven’t taken one since Easter and, really, how much more do you need to do? There’s only 2 weeks of school left before exams.”

Remus carefully set the book on top of the parchment that Tonks had accidently left in his office before giving Sirius a quick laugh, “Yeah, sure, I’ll be there. I think Minerva was hoping to come for dinner soon too. She said we’ve been ‘keeping her grandson away for too long’. Her words, not mine.”

“Well then bring her along! I’ll cook steaks.”

“Sounds good!” Remus called as Sirius headed out of his office, waiving as he went. 

Remus waited a breath before letting out a sigh and picking up the parchment again. He carefully slid it into Tonks’ Rune Translation book and called for a school elf and had the elf return the book and parchment back to Tonks’ dorm room before turning back to his desk, packing up, and turning in for the evening.


	27. Chapter twenty-seven: Ancient Translations

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Ancient Translations

Harry tumbled back into a crouch with his hand on the floor, his eyes looking up through his sweaty hair at the girl across from him. She stood with her feet apart, one hand behind her for balance and the other, open and flat in front of her face just in front of her nose up at an angle. She smiled mischievously but waited a breath too long as Harry seized the moment and sprung up at the girl, pumping and then kicking her in the stomach and springing back to his feet and grabbing her and flipping her over his shoulder. 

Hermione, somehow, she was able to use her lower body strength to swing her legs around as she was falling. She was able to hook them around Harry’s chest and took him down with her so she ended up on top of him. She calmly and precisely jabbed her elbow into his throat and grinned. 

“And we have a winner!” the announcer shouted, “Ms. Hermione Granger is our new regional champion! Give her a round of applause Ladies and Gentlemen; this was no easy match!”

Hermione jumped to her feet and let the announcer hold her hand up while Harry calmly got to his feet, a smile on his face. He couldn’t have been prouder of his friend than he was right now. She had bested him, only nearly, and she deserved to win. 

The crowd roared with approval and Harry could see his dad and uncles, Ron and Ginny, and Draco, as well as Jean and Rick cheering Hermione on as she received her trophy. Harry simply grinned more broadly as he hugged Hermione tightly and he felt the tears rolling down her face. Harry simply hugged her tighter before they were met with their large group of supporters surrounding them—then Harry let her go and watched as she was hugged in turn by each of their friends and family. 

Harry savored ever chance he got to see Hermione now that she and her family moved away. They were forced to relegate their friendship to writing letters which was going to get increasingly more difficult once he, Ron, and Draco started at Hogwarts. 

While he was happy for his friend and excited for her victory, a small part of Harry was upset, worried, that he had lost in hand-to-hand combat against her. Even though he was 8 and didn’t fully understand the events of the night his mother died, he did understand that, for some reason, his future was tied unequivocally to Tom Riddle and if he wanted a chance to win the end battle, he needed to get better, stronger. Second best would never cut it. 

~ID~

Uncle Moony,

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since the championship match against Hermione. I know dad has been teaching me the basic elemental, wandless magic the last two years, but I’d really like to start working on some more defensive magic. I talked to dad about it and he said that if you taught me, he’d work with Dumbledore to let me come to Hogwarts on the weekends for lessons. So, would you, Uncle Moony? Please! Just a few simple spells. Maybe the disarming charm or a shield charm! I already come to Hogwarts most weekends anyway to see Nana Minnie, I’d just be working on magic. I’ll even do homework if you make me! 

Write back with your answer! Miss you, Uncle Moony. 

Bucky

~ID~

Bucky,

I don’t know that having you come to Hogwarts and learn defensive spells is the best idea. There’s a reason that Hogwarts waits until students are 11 before having them begin harnessing their magic. At your age, your emotional balance is not stable enough to properly harness your abilities. I can certainly speak to Dumbledore about it and he may have a different opinion, but I doubt it. I think you need to focus on your muggle studies, languages, muggle dueling, and your fencing for now. You’re only 8 and I don’t want you to take on too much too soon. 

Until I have a chance to discuss this with Dumbledore, you’re welcome to research the theory behind the defensive spells. I would recommend “Defensive Spells Every Wizard Should Know, Explained” By Bruce Warshawsky. I feel that Warshawsky gives a thorough explanation of the mechanics and process of basic defensive spells extremely well and knowing the theory of a spell will help you when you learn to use it someday. I believe there’s a copy of the book at Potter Manner and, if not, I’m sure James would take you to Flourish and Blotts to buy it. Start by reading up on the shield charm, Protego. That’s going to be your best defensive spell to most jinxes and curses that the average witch or wizard might use. 

I’ll write as soon as I talk to Dumbledore. 

Uncle Moony

~ID~

Nana,

Are we on for our chess match this weekend? I’ve been practicing at home with dad and I’ve been getting better at it! 

Also, dad told me to invite you for dinner on Thursday. Gus and Cirri are making a post roast with carrots because they know it’s one of your favorites. Please, please come! I want to show you my fencing skills and we can go flying. I’m hoping to be picked for the traveling quidditch team this year so I really need to practice. Coach is pretty sure I’ll be chosen but if I don’t practice, I won’t be. 

Miss you!

Harry

~ID~

James stumbled out of the fireplace in Minerva’s office late in the evening and used his wand to cleanse the soot off of himself. Minerva barely glanced up at him as she worked on grading the papers in front of her. 

“Good evening, James. Albus told me you would be stopping by.”

“Evening, Minerva. Are you going to make it to dinner tomorrow? Harry’s excited to see you.”

Minerva finished marking the document in front of her and sat her quill down and looked up at James, “Yes, I was pleased to receive the invitation. I do expect to see more of my grandson this year—I wasn’t pleased with how little I got to see him this summer. You’re working that poor boy too hard, James.”

James let out a small laugh, “I’m sorry, Minerva. Harry really enjoys his extracurricular activities and I can’t help the fact that they all happen during the summer. Er, well, that his competitions happen during the quidditch season over the summer, anyway.”

Minerva pursed her lips, “Yes, well, you should make sure he has the time to visit his pseudo grandmother. I needn’t remind you that chess is an important activity that promotes tactical planning and critical thinking. Not to mention I’ve been receiving letters from him asking when he can come visit me again.”

“I’ll be sure to send him over to visit this weekend,” James replied, smiling. 

Minerva let a small smile escape her as she nodded, “Have him floo here at 10AM sharp, will you?” 

“Sure thing. I need to get up to Dumbledore’s office though. We’ll see you tomorrow night.”

James quickly made his way through the castle until he found his way to the entrance to Dumbledore’s office and said the password. After the statue jumped aside to reveal the stairwell James ascended the stairs up to the door of Dumbledore’s study. Before he could knock on the door, he heard a brief, “come in”. 

James pushed the door to the study open and was surprised to see Remus sitting in a chair opposite Dumbledore. Both men looked his direction as he slowly walked into the office and took the open chair next to Remus.

“Good evening, James,” Dumbledore said with a soft smile on his face, “It seems you’re just in time to be privy to Professor Lupin’s request to have Harry come to Hogwarts to learn wandless, defensive spells.”

James’ eyes widened, “Yeah, right, I forgot he had asked to do that. I didn’t realize Harry had spoken to you about that, Moony.”

“He sent me a letter earlier today asking if I’d teach him,” Remus said and then frowned, “Harry had told me that you said you were ok with him coming to learn some defensive magic if I taught him here at Hogwarts.”

“Yeah I said that. He just can’t learn them at home because of the statute of secrecy and underage magic rules. Otherwise I’d be teaching him some basic spell work outside of the elemental magic that’s sanctioned by the Ministry,” James turned his attention to Dumbledore, “What are you thinking about this?”

Dumbledore let out a breath and frowned, “Well, James, Remus, you’re both away, I’m sure, of my opinion that Harry shouldn’t spend his childhood training for a war that we cannot predict the start date of. At this time we have no indication of when Voldemort will rise back to power and Harry shouldn’t be forced to train and worry for a day that we cannot predict.”

James frowned, his eyes darkening as he spoke in a deep, curt voice, “And I’m sure you remember my opinion that we should do everything in our power to give Harry as many tools as possible for when Voldemort returns. As you said, we have no idea when he’ll come back, it could be tomorrow for all we know, and he should be as prepared as we can make him. I am of the general opinion that, if he can do it, he should. We’ve already had him learning muggle fighting techniques including hand-to-hand combat so he will never be without a defensive weapon. Teaching him wandless magic at his age increases his chances of success if he has to defend himself without a wand.”

Dumbledore nodded curtly, “Then it’s settled. Harry shall come to Hogwarts once every two weeks to learn wandless defensive spells from Professor Lupin. If you insist on Harry learning such techniques then I feel it’s best to do so in a controlled environment like Hogwarts.”

“Then it’s settled,” Remus said as he stood up, “I will be happy to teach Harry defensive magic. James, can you have him here at 9am on Saturday? We can have his first lesson then. I expect him to have read up on the shield charm by then.”

James nodded, “That sounds good.”

“Ok,” Remus replied, “I’ll leave you two to whatever you needed to discuss, then. Night.”

Dumbledore nodded at Remus as he headed out of the room. James turned back toward Dumbledore and looked into the brilliant blue eyes staring back at him. 

“Well, James, it’s been quite some time since we had a chance to discuss Voldemort’s potential immortality, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah it has. Were you able to get any information from Morfin Gaunt? I brought the research I found on the horcruxes.”

“In fact, I was. I think you’ll find this memory extremely interesting.”

Dumbledore moved across the room and pulled his pensieve out of his cabinet and placed it gently on his desk. He quickly pulled a small flask filled with a silvery liquid out of his pocket and deposited the contents into the basin. He carefully swirled the contents with the tip of his wand and then looked up at James. 

“Shall we?” Dumbledore asked as he indicated the basin full of Morfin’s memories. 

James nodded and stood up before placing his face into the liquid in the basin. He felt the uncomfortable sensation of falling into a memory. 

James looked over at Dumbledore as he landed lightly next to him. The two men watched as Bob Ogden made his way to the Gaunt shack and spoke to Marvolo about his son, Morfin. James was extremely confused by the hissing sounds that were continuously exchanged between Morfin and Marvolo—now and then he looked over at Dumbledore during these odd exchanges to see if he understood the odd and mysterious language but he was met with Dumbledore staring into the sky or off into the distance with a smile on his face. 

When Marvolo attacked Merope, James yelled and jumped into action to help her before remembering that they were viewing a memory and there was nothing he could do. 

Eventually the memory changed and James found himself socked to be standing face to face with a young Voldemort inside of the Gaunt shack. James watched with curiosity the exchange between Morfin and Voldemort with fascination and was shocked at the abrupt end of the memory. 

James and Dumbledore both came out of the pensieve and took their seats at the desk and looked at one another. James broke the silence first. 

“Well. That was…something. What the hell did I just watch?”

Dumbledore leaned back in his seat and folded his hands together, “As to the first memory, I cannot be sure of everything that was said between Morfin and Marvolo. It is clear, however, that Morfin had attacked Tom Riddle Sr., Lord Voldemort’s father, because of his sister, Merope’s, infatuation with him and that Bob Ogden was there to inform them of the Ministry Hearing regarding the incident. From my understanding, after Ogden left, he returned to the Gaunt shack with law enforcement and arrested both Marvolo and Morfin for the incident. Marvolo received less time in Azkaban than Morfin. While both father and son were in Azkaban, I speculate that Merope then discovered her magic that hat been suppressed. I believe she may have used a love potion on Tom Riddle Sr. as, according to the town gossip, he suddenly left the woman he had been with in the memory for the pauper’s daughter. It was quite the scandal and I suspect it would have been easy for her to slip it into some lemonade on a hot day—it wouldn’t have taken much convincing to get him to drink it. 

“At some point after the first memory Tom Riddle Sr. returned to Little Hangleton claiming to have been bewitched by his wife. I believe that Merope decided, whether she believed that Tom truly loved her or believed he would stay for his child, to stop giving him the potion. Once the effects wore off, it seems she was sadly disappointed. And when he left, I believe she was no longer able to perform magic, even to save her own life or that of her child’s. 

“After the second memory, the entire Riddle family was found dead in their dining room. The muggles never determined a cause of death, but the Auror’s knew it was from the killing curse. 

“Because of his past altercations with Tom Riddle Sr., the Auror’s investigated him first. Once they arrived, Morfin admitted to the murders and an inspection of his wand revealed that it had performed the killing curse three times within the last twenty-four hours. Morfin was then sent to Azkaban with a life sentence. I was able to procure these memories three weeks ago from him. However, as I extracted these memories, I became aware of the altered memories from the night of the murder. They did not match the rest of his mind. After some spell work and digging, I discovered that Morfin had several hours of missing time from that evening. I believe that Voldemort killed his family and framed his only Uncle for the crime.”

James had sat up during Dumbledore’s explanation, open mouthed, “So, he, Riddle I mean, had murdered three people before he turned seventeen?”

Dumbledore nodded, “Yes, I believe so.”

Shocked, James replied, “But—he—he was so young. That’s…just evil.”

“Yes. And I believe Voldemort’s past is becoming clearer and clearer as I also learned that Morfin’s family ring was missing upon his arrest. The missing ring was all he cared about as the Auror’s carted him off to prison.”

“You think Voldemort took it as a prize?” 

“Yes, I believe he did. This memory, and the missing items of note, lead me to believe more and more that we may be facing a man who made a Horcrux. But I cannot be sure. Without more information, or something indicating a horcrux can even be made…” Dumbledore said as he trailed off. 

“I found it.”

Dumbledore sat up, his eyes alert, “Go on.”

James quickly pulled out the documents he had brought with him containing the translation of the missing horcrux information, “It’s all in here. A man from the early 12th century attempted to make a horcrux based on the original Egyptian design but he tweaked the recipe and spell and he succeeded in making the object and successfully and safely, albeit painfully, removing the portion of his soul. The wizard also has to perform a spell on the removed piece of soul to gain control over it so that they can physically move it into the object they have turned into a horcrux. So, I figure one has to make the potion and use that to make the horcrux before they can remove their soul. 

“From the research, if you wait too long to put the soul into the object, it dies. From the author’s experiments, the witch or wizard has about an hour to place the soul into the object before that occurs. And the potion—I’ve never read a more horrible recipe. I don’t—I’m not even sure how one would be able to get some of these ingredients and it takes 6 months to brew it with almost constant care.”

As James spoke, Dumbledore was quickly reading over the translation James had made. James could hear him periodically mumbling an ingredient under his breath such as “Heart of a virgin wizard” and “ovaries that have not undergone reproduction.” 

“Dumbledore,” James said carefully, “If he found this document, he would have been able to safely create a horcrux if he was willing to gather the ingredients necessary. We already know he was capable of murder for fun, I 100 percent believe that he was willing to murder others to gather the heart and ovaries necessary. But, it’s the last step of the spell that I just—I can’t even think about.”

“’Once the wizard safely encases the soul within the horcrux, the soul must be sealed within by placing the horcrux and soul within the belly of a new born wizard until it’s natural death,’” Dumbledore read aloud as James paled, vomit at the back of his throat as he the thought of anyone doing that to an infant engulfed his mind. 

“Even he wouldn’t…would he?”

Dumbledore looked up at James, his eyes hard as steel, as he replied, “I believe he would and did.”

James placed his head into his hands as he thought to himself that it couldn’t get any worse than that.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight: Protego

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Protego

Moony,

We’re having an emergency father meeting at the Manner Saturday after dinner. I have more information on Voldemort’s eventual return.

Prongs

~ID~

Bucky,

I just finished speaking to Dumbledore about having you come to Hogwarts and work on some wandless, defensive magic and he agreed to allow you to have those lessons. I’d like you to please finish reading the chapter on the shield charm before Saturday morning—we’ll be working on that charm for the day. Because you’ll be doing it wandlessly, you really need to focus on the mechanics behind the spell work and the wand movements. If you understand those, you should be able to learn how to use the charm without a wand. 

And I don’t want you bragging about this to your friends—it’s not common practice for Hogwarts to allow younger students to learn magic and if your friends found out there could be issues with them wanting to learn or parents upset that their kids aren’t having an early start. So just keep it between us, your dad, and Padfoot, ok?

Saturday morning you’ll floo to Hogwarts into my office. After your lesson Minerva wants to spend some time with you so you’ll go to her office until dinner. She’ll bring you back then. 

Love,

Uncle Moony

~ID~

Harry,

Did you want to come over this weekend? Mum and dad said it’s ok and we haven’t seen you in a while and we’re missing you. Write back soon!

Ginny

~ID~

Draco heard a scratching at his bedroom window late in the evening and threw his quill aside. He was beyond frustrated with the outdated writing instrument. He understood that quills are the writing tool for the wizard, but surely someone has come up with a way to make it self-ink. He knew quick quotes quills existed but to use them you had to speak and that was not often inducive of a properly written paper and could be more time consuming. Draco sighed as he pushed the paper he was working on aside and stood up and stretched. 

He looked back at the document he had been working on and shrugged before heading over to the window and throwing it open, letting the tawny owl fly into his room and land on his bed. The owl held out his leg and waited for him to untie the letter, annoyed with Draco’s delay. 

Rolling his eyes at the impatient bird, Draco quickly untied the letter from his leg before the owl flew away. Draco quickly opened the letter and began to read. 

Draco,

I’m planning on having Ron and Ginny over later next week for some hang out time. My dad is going to do a weather resistant dome in our backyard so we can play with the slip n’ slide and water balloons and stuff. Want to come over? Dad says you can stay over for the night if you want—Ron and Ginny are too and we have more than enough space. 

OH! And dad has me doing research into defensive spells. Isn’t your dad having you research some spells, too? Maybe we can discuss them when you come over. 

I’ve put a letter to you from Hermione in this envelope, too. I didn’t read it, but I did take it out of the envelope so it would fit in this one. I’m glad you guys are still talking, I know she was worried about losing all of us as friends when she moved. I worry about her sometimes—she gets so caught up in her class work and extracurriculars that sometimes she forgets about herself. Thanks for looking out for her. 

See you soon.

Harry

Draco smiled at Harry’s letter. It still surprised him that there were other kids his age that not only thought about and liked him but that they actively and voluntarily invited him to do things with them. Sure, Blaise, Ted, Goyle, and Crabbe invited him places and it seemed like Blaise and Ted actually liked him, but he was sure that was more so because their parents required them to have playdates much like his father did. He didn’t mind Blaise and Ted so much, they were definitely much more interesting than Crabbe or Goyle, that’s for sure. But Ted’s father made Draco feel extremely uncomfortable the few times he happens to be home when Draco visits. Normally it’s just Ted’s stepmother supervising them when he visits but…Draco couldn’t help but wonder why Ted’s father was so nerve wracking. 

Draco set that thought aside. It wasn’t worth agonizing over a feeling that he not only couldn’t place but also couldn’t explain. He shook his head and pulled out the second letter from the envelope and smiled when he saw Hermione’s small, neat handwriting. 

Draco,

I was so glad to hear from you! I definitely got your letter. Well, obviously since I’m mailing you back. It’s more than ok that you lent the book to Ginny—she had asked to borrow it and I planned to mail it to her anyway so that saves me the postage. Thank you for sending me Hatchet. I read it literally in a day, it was so good! I just sent a package to Ginny with another book I think you’ll like and she said she’s happy to pass it along to you. It’s called The Outsiders. You remind me of one of the characters in there—Ponyboy. You both have the same kind soul and love for literature and a strong loyalty to your friends. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed with the book. 

I have no idea when I’ll be back in Scotland. Mom and dad started their own dentistry practice here and it’s doing exceptionally well. I don’t see us moving back anytime soon and it’s so difficult to find the time to travel with them right now since they’re still establishing themselves in practice. It sounded like mom is going to let me go to Harry’s party this year, but I guess that’s going to depend on when it is and if they can get off. 

My new school is alright. I don’t think it’s nearly as challenging as my last one. The level of demand for work is exceptionally lower and I’ve already finished most of the lessons we’ll be doing this year at my last school. It’s quite dull. But, after telling mom that both you and Harry have started learning new languages, she agreed to let me learn French! She agreed that being bilingual is an integral part of a child’s education. She and dad hired a French tutor that I get to meet with twice a week to work on the language. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun. 

I looked into the Greek Myth about Persephone and my goodness it was captivating! You were absolutely right, I loved reading about her and I can see why she would remind you of Ginny—she definitely knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to take it. Not to mention that Persephone basically ran the underworld for Hades; Ginny definitely has the leadership skills to do something like that. 

How have you been doing? Has your father been as strict as he had been last school year? He’s not still making you visit those boys is he? And did he finally let you start spending some time at the Burrow with Ron and Ginny? I think it’s so wrong that he refuses to allow you to visit them just because they aren’t as well-off as your family is. That’s just so horrible and classist of him. 

Please write back soon, I miss you. 

All my love,

Hermione

Draco smiled at the words on the page before him. He gently ran his fingers over the writing, his eyes lingering over Hermione’s signature. 

He jumped as he heard someone calling for him from downstairs. He quickly dropped to his knees by his bed and pulled up a loose floorboard there and carefully lifted a box out of it. glancing at the door to his room, Draco lifted the lid to the box and revealed all of the letters that Hermione and Ginny had sent him over the last few years. He carefully folded his letter back up and placed it lovingly in the box before replacing the box under the floor board and leaving his room to meet whomever was calling him. 

~ID~

Harry stepped into the fireplace Saturday morning to floo to Remus’ office at Hogwarts. Every bit of him was alight with anticipation for their lesson today; the thought of being able to control and use his magic in a way that will benefit him, purposefully, excited him more than anything ever had before. 

As he stepped out of the fireplace he brushed the soot off of himself and looked up at his uncle who was sitting patiently behind his desk. 

“Morning Uncle Moony!” Harry exclaimed excitedly, “Ready to get started? I did the reading you asked me to do. I brought the book, too.”

Remus smiled at Harry and gestured for him to sit across from him, “Take a seat, Harry. Before we start I want to review what you’ve learned from your assignment. Does that sound good?”

Harry’s smile faded as he nodded and reluctantly took the seat across form Remus, “Why do we need to talk about the reading first?”

“Well, I think you’ll find you can pick these spells up better if you understand the theory behind them. Doing a spell with a wand is easier for a witch or wizard because we use our wands to channel the magic already inside of us. Most magical people can learn to do a spell even without fully understanding the theory behind said spell work. Obviously, it’s easier and more effective if you understand, but it’s not completely necessary. But to do spells without your wand becomes complicated as your magic is harder to channel. It can often splinter as it moves through the different parts of your body. Some witches and wizards pick up on using wandless magic much more easily and effectively than others—some never seem to pick up on the skill at all. Whether that’s from lack of trying or from lack of power no one is really sure. 

“So, tell me what you learned about the shield charm, Protego.”

Harry shifted in his seat nervously. Of course he had read the assignment like Remus had asked him to, but that didn’t make him any less nervous to explain what he had learned in detail. What if he had misunderstood the theory?

“Well,” he began tentatively, “I read that, in order to create the shield charm, you need to imagine protecting yourself. You need to want to keep yourself safe and you need to maintain that concentration for the duration of the spell. And the wand movement is an upward flick of your wand. Or, I guess in my case, my…hand?”

Remus nodded, “You’ve definitely done your reading. I think it’s also important to note that this is a difficult spell. Many fully-trained wizards are incapable of correctly performing this spell. I do not anticipate you being able to properly and fully perform this charm today. But that doesn’t mean we can’t work on the basics of it. 

“Now, your understanding of the theory is pretty accurate but I think you’re misunderstanding a key element. Yes, the shield charm is intended to protect you and block most jinxes, hexes, curses, and spells, but that’s not what you’re supposed to imagine when you create it. When performing the spell, you need to imagine yourself drawing a shield up with your magic. Pull your magic around you, let it morph and solidify to block whatever comes your way. Think of it more of you bending your magic rather than creating something. Does that make sense?”

Harry nodded, “I think so, Uncle Moony.”

“Ok. I want you to stand in the middle of my office here and imagine moving your magic and solidifying it so it can become a shield for you. Take however long you think you need. Once you’ve concentrated on that, we can try performing the spell and I’ll send some simple jinxes and spells your direction and see if you can block them. Alright?”

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

“Alright, then go ahead. Just let me know when you’re ready.”

Nodding, Harry stood up and walked to the center of the room. He spent the better part of an hour looking within himself and feeling his magic coursing through him. He imagined drawing it up and out, solidifying it in front of him. Once he felt he was ready he looked back at his Uncle who had begun marking papers while he waited.

Remus looked up at Harry and smiled, “Ready to give it a go?”

“Yeah I think so.”

“Remember, don’t expect to be able to do it right away. Like I said, most fully grown wizards can’t perform this spell even with a wand and you’re so young, untrained, and trying to do it without one.”

“I know. I want to try, though. I’ll figure it out eventually,” Harry replied confidently. 

“Alright,” Remus said as he stood up and walked to Harry, “We’ll give it a go.”

Harry nodded, a fierce look in his eyes as he stared into the whiskey colored ones across from him. He held his hands up, defensively, as he concentrated on that flowing feeling of his magic coursing through his veins. He breathed in through his mouth and out through his nose as he concentrated and then, very deliberately and exactly, brought his hand down on a slashing motion and shouted, “Protego!” as he imagined an invisible shield rising up before him. 

Remus nodded solemnly before raising his wand and drawing what looked like a leaf in the air and saying, “Rictusempra!” 

Immediately Harry felt like invisible hands were tickling him all over his body and he couldn’t stop laughing. He doubled over and laughed until he couldn’t breathe and the spell wore off. 

As he stood up, he couldn’t help but feel slightly disheartened—he had hoped to prove his Uncle wrong and be able to perform the spell right away. Then he felt a sudden wave of determination and put his hands up again.

“Bucky,” Remus said wearily, “Don’t feel discouraged, ok? Remember what I said, even most fully grown—”

“Again!” Harry shouted at Remus. He once again slashed his hand through the air, determined to protect himself, while shouting, “Protego!” 

Remus’ eyes narrowed as he looked at Harry before drawing a spiral in the air before him and saying, “Flipendo.”

Harry felt something weakly pushing at him, forcing him to take a step backwards. His eyes, now a deep, dark emerald, bore into Remus’ face as he gave his Uncle a confident and cocky smile before slashing the air again, concentrating on what he had done before, amplifying that feeling. 

Remus smiled back—this was going to be an interesting lesson. 

~ID~

Prongs and Padfoot,

You should have seen Bucky today at his lesson. I’ve never seen a display of raw power like he has. I know he wasn’t able to fully master the shield charm by the end of our lesson, but he’s pretty damn close. Producing a shield is difficult enough with a wand and he’s nearly fully mastered it without one. Can you imagine what he’ll be able to do once he’s got a functional wand and some training? I really think we should consider having him work on more wandless spells at home. The Ministry allows younger children to work on basic spells wandlessly at home with their parents under Educational Decree Number 9—I really think you should consider giving him some foundation for when he begins at Hogwarts. 

Padfoot, I was hoping you might be willing to come sit with me on Tuesday during the full moon? I’ve been getting lonely during the changes and I know Prongs has practice in the morning. I’ll treat you to breakfast the next morning if you want. I don’t have a lesson until the afternoon. 

I think Ms. Nymphadora Tonks’ crush has persisted into this school year. I keep finding papers she leaves behind with our names surrounded by little hearts and her name as “Tonks Lupin”. Honestly, I’m not sure what to make of it. I mean, she’s 14 for gods sake! Well, maybe she’s 15 by now, I don’t know. Maybe I can talk Charlie into having a word with her, they seem to be pretty good friends. Do you two have any advice? And, no, Sirius, I don’t want advice on how to seduce a woman—I want advice on how to make her understand that this is highly inappropriate. 

I feel like we need a guys night. When’s the last time we had one, anyway? Harry is staying over at the Weasleys soon, isn’t he? Why don’t we plan for one that night? I think we could all use the relaxation, couldn’t we?

Moony

~ID~

Moony,

Now why would you think that I would give you advice on how to seduce a woman? I mean, it’s not like I’m the expert or anything? And, of course I’m not writing this while I have a sexy lady in my bed or anything. Right? 

But, if you want advice on how to pick up chicks…you put your hand on the ground and then let them hop into it so you can pet their little yellow feathers. Get it? Pick up CHICKS? Like, baby chickens? Ha! 

Anyway. I’m sure that it’s just a crush Tonks has and that it’ll pass as she gets old and starts to date boys her age. Or, maybe, as she gets older, you’ll find her attractive too. Never know, Moony! She sure is a spitfire—it’d work well once she was of age! 

If you’re really concerned about it, though, maybe talk to Andy—I’m sure she could give you some advice on how to handle Tonks. 

As to guys night. I’m SO in. I’ve already hired strippers. And I know what you’re going to say. “Why would you hire a stripper? It’s just the three of us, we don’t need one.” Fuck that, you ALWAYS need a stripper. And she’s got a delicious name. What was it…I think it was Cinnamon? Sugar? Er, it was something sweet. I’m sure she’ll be delicious. 

We can get you guys some good beers and get me some fancy juices. I heard of this new thing called Kombucha. It’s gaining in popularity and it sounds super fancy. Maybe I’ll buy a case of it for guys night. Or I heard of this muggle stuff called marijuana—that sounds fun! I’m going to try to find some of that shit.

Padfoot

~ID~

Padfoot,

Ok, I’ll admit that guy’s night was a blast. I feel like we need to make this a twice a year thing. Caramel was just as delicious to look at as she was to eat. I honestly cannot believe Moony and I did body shots off of her. And then conjuring a stripper pole for the rec room was absolutely brilliant. Though, I think the everlasting, no-melt ice cream really did the trick; still didn’t top that brisket you made in the smoker. I’ve never been more thankful to Moony for making us get, and learn to use, that muggle contraption. It’s so worth what I paid for it. 

How did you convince Caramel to go flying naked? Or, better question, how much did you pay her to do it? I mean, I don’t regret watching that strip tease, but that must have cost a fortune. And then the bloody brilliant idea of skydiving off of the brooms at high altitude? It’s a good thing we can do the cushioning charm…that could have ended badly.

And what the hell were you smoking all night? That stuff reeked and I can’t get the scent out of my clothes.

Wait. Why am I owling you? You live literally down the hall from me. Eh fuck it. I’m shoving this under your door. See you at dinner.

Prongs

~ID~

The rest of the year went smoothly for the Marauders as they each spent time furthering their careers. It was finally the last weekend of the school year when Harry met Remus for their last lesson before break. Harry had been working hard on mastering the shield charm to no avail. He had somewhat managed to lessen the impact of the spell directed at him, but hadn’t managed to fully block anything yet. 

Harry looked up at Remus, sweat pouring down his thin face as he breathed out heavily and held his hands up once more and shouted, “Again! Protego!” 

“Bucky,” Remus said carefully as he looked at Harry, “It’s late and you’ve bee at this for two hours now. You must be exhausted. Let’s take a break, ok?”

“No, one more time, ok?” Harry asked stubbornly. 

“Bucky—”

“One. More. Time.” 

Remus furrowed his brows in frustration before sending the leg-locker jinx at Harry. Both Harry and Remus’ eyes widened in shock as the spell ricocheted off of an invisible force in front of Harry and flew up and into the ceiling where the jet of light dissipated. Harry and Remus looked at each other in shock before yelling in excitement. 

“I did it!” Harry shouted as he threw a fist into the air, “I finally did it!” 

“Yes, you did! I’m so proud of you, Bucky! This is an amazing accomplishment! Let’s try it again; until you have it consistently.”

Harry nodded and stood up straight and performed the charm again. After a dozen more tries, Harry and Remus felt confident in saying that Harry had mastered the spell. 

In their excitement, Remus flooed James and Sirius to come and see Harry in action. Both men were extremely impressed and proud of Harry’s progress as they watched him block several spells with his shield before it shattered. And, before they all headed out for the day, and for Remus, the summer, they agreed that the next spell Harry would work on was the disarming charm. Harry suddenly couldn’t wait until the next school year.


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine: Family Prejudices

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Family Prejudices

WHACK! A roll of paper slammed in front of Draco as he stared out of the window absentmindedly. He started and looked up and into the grey eyes of his father. 

“Pay attention, Boy! I don’t pay a fortune for this tutor to have you daydreaming during all of your lessons,” Lucius snapped at his son.

“I’m sorry, Father,” Draco said quietly, “I was just—” 

“You were just, what, Draco? Pay attention of your own accord or I will make you pay attention.”

“Yes, Father. Sorry, Father,” Draco said as he hung his head and began to work ferociously on the problems in front of him.

“Ms. McDougal!” Lucius snapped.

Ms. McDougal, Draco’s tutor, stood up and nodded, “Yes, Lord Malfoy?”

“I expect Draco to receive extra work today for his insubordination. Do I make myself clear?” Lucius stated loftily.

She nodded, “Yes, Sir. I’ll have him finish some extra lessons before he is free to go for the day.”

“Excellent,” Lucius stated before turning to Draco, his eyes narrowing, “We shall discuss this infraction later this evening. It shall not go unpunished.”

“Yes, Father,” Draco responded, solemnly.

Lucius nodded before turning on his heel and striding out of the room, leaving Draco with Ms. McDougal alone. He kept his head down, trying to focus on the math problems that had been assigned to him. After a few minutes he chanced a glance up at Ms. McDougal to see if she had gone back to reading her novel. He let out a small breath when he saw that she was deeply engrossed and he physically relaxed, resuming his thoughts. 

The last two years had sped by—he could still hardly believe that he was starting Hogwarts in two short months. He had been reflecting on how his life had changed over the years in both good ways and bad ways. While he had continued some correspondence with Harry, Ginny, and Hermione, it had waned over the years. They had exchanged letters less and less over the last two years as his Father continuously blocked him from being able to visit. It had gotten increasingly more difficult when the family owl had passed away—he had been forced to use Dobby, Blinky, and Maddy to send letters to his friends, making it nearly impossible to get letters to Hermione. Despite all of this, his mind continued to wander back to the loose board under his bed where his box of letters lay hidden. 

Despite all of this, as of now his Father had given him permission to attend Harry’s 11th birthday next weekend and he was desperately hoping that he hadn’t ruined that opportunity by getting caught not doing his school work. 

Several hours later, after finally finishing all of the course work assigned to him, Draco made his way down to his Father’s study. As he stood outside looking at the dark wood of the oak door he took a deep breath and rapped his knuckles on the door. 

“Enter,” Lucius called from the room. 

Draco purposefully pushed the door open and stepped inside of his father’s study. As he walked in, his nose was assaulted by the smell of peppermint and rosemary, his father’s preferred scent. He could see the tall bookshelves that lined the back wall and the shelves filled with different, dark artifacts. He suspiciously eyed a rotting skull that sat precariously on a shelf next to his face.

He stepped forward and closed the door behind him before taking a seat in front of his father’s desk and sat stock-straight. He looked into his father’s eyes for several long seconds before breaking the silence. 

“You wanted to see me, Father?” 

Lucius’ eyes bore into his son’s as he sat, looking over his fingertips as he leaned on his desk, “Yes, I did, Draco.”

Draco waited several more agonizing seconds as his father seemingly stared directly into his soul. Finally, Lucius began. 

“Draco. You are aware, or, I would assume that even someone such as yourself would be aware, that in two short months you will begin your ten-year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I wished to speak to you regarding your expected behavior and general attitude while you continue your education within the public eye. 

“As you are very aware, you come from a long line of esteemed witches and wizards and we are held to a higher standard than the average citizen. We are expected to uphold the traditional, pure-blood values passed down to us through the centuries by not only our ancestors but the founder of our family house, Salazar Slytherin. 

“In the last several years I have been not only disappointed but, honestly, appalled at your choices in…company. If you can call that brood ‘company’. You have continuously disappointed and embarrassed our family by continuing your unnatural communication with the Weasley horde. You are aware of their blood status and unsavory position within the Ministry, correct?”

Draco nodded while letting out an internal sigh of relief upon the realization that his father was blissfully unaware of his friendship with a muggle. A small glimmer of hope that he could get out of this conversation mostly unscathed. 

“Good. As you can understand, such relationships are not conducive of a proper upbringing and future employment of which I expect both from you. While I’m not overly excited at the idea of you having such a relationship with the half-blood, so called ‘boy who lived’, I suppose that at this juncture such a relationship may have long-term benefits that we are yet aware of. I have hope that such a relationship may be beneficial when the Dark Lord rises again. But I digress. My point, Draco, is my expectation that with this new start you cut ties with any and all poor relationships and should I receive word that such relationships have continued, well, there will be a problem. Do I make myself clear, Draco?” 

Draco gulped, “Yes, Father, I understand.” 

Lucius sat back in his chair, a sly smile on his face, “I am pleased, Draco. And when you’re sorted into Slytherin your mother and I shall make sure you’re rewarded appropriately.”

Draco frowned, “Father?”

“Yes, Draco?”

“What—what if I’m not sorted into Slytherin? I mean, I don’t have control over that decision,” Draco asked carefully.

Lucius frowned, his eyes flashing black, “You will be sorted into Slytherin, Draco. Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear.”

Draco glanced down at the floor as he replied, “Yes Father.”

“Wonderful. Now, go and continue your studies. Your inability to focus today has lost you your free time for the evening. Perhaps if you do better tomorrow you can earn it back.”

“Yes, Father, I understand.”

“Go,” Lucius snapped as he waived Draco away. 

Draco quickly stood up and exited the room, hurrying back to his room before shutting the door and sliding down the wall. And, as he sat there, Draco thought to himself, What do I do? 

~ID~

Harry awoke the morning of July 31st more excited for his birthday than he ever had been before. Today was his 11th birthday and he would be receiving his Hogwarts acceptance letter at any minute! Not only that, he had also invited all of his best friends over for a pool party to celebrate. Ron, Ginny, Fred and George, Charlie, and Draco would be arriving at his house around 1 to celebrate. Charlie was bringing his friend from Hogwarts—he told Harry that had met before, but he doesn’t remember much about Tonks. Just that she can change her appearance at will. But Harry was excited to get to talk to her because, apparently, she had been accepted into the auror program and he had a thousand questions for her. He knew that his dad and Uncle Sirius had once been in the program themselves, but that was so long ago and neither had finished that Harry just didn’t bother to ask them about it. 

He quickly got out of bed and got ready for the day before realizing it wasn’t even 8 yet. Upon realizing this, Harry simply shrugged and made his way downstairs anyway. He figured he could find something to do before his friends arrived that would keep him occupied. He knew he at least had to respond to Hermione’s latest letter. He had been excited to hear that she had been accepted at a prestigious boarding school in Scotland—he was hoping that they could see each other during the holidays now that she would be closer with school. 

Harry was the first to breakfast that morning but he didn’t mind. He pulled a blank piece of parchment toward himself so he could write a reply to Hermione’s letter while he ate. 

“Good morning, Master Harry! And happy birthday to you. What is you liking to eat for breakfast?” Cirri asked Harry as she made her way into the kitchen.

Harry thought for a moment before smiling, “Snickerdoodle pancakes, of course!”

Cirri smiled, “I should have guessed you is wanting your favorite! Is you wanting Gus to be waking the rest of the family?”

“Nah that’s ok. I was too excited to sleep. They can wake up whenever.”

Cirri nodded and moved on to start making breakfast while Harry continued to work on his letter. It wasn’t long before a large stack of pancakes were placed in front of him and it was an even shorter period of time before he had finished all of them. They had been delicious. 

As soon as he finished his pancakes he hears a soft tapping at the kitchen window. Harry jumped up and quickly let the unfamiliar owl into the room and removed the letter from its leg. He recognized the handwriting on the front of the envelope as his nana’s and tore the letter open, knowing immediately what it was. 

HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, 

Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards).

Dear Mr. Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. 

Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your own by no later than 31 July. 

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

“Yes!” Harry shouted as he finished reading the first page. He quickly moved onto the second page and scanned its contents.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

1\. Three sets of plain work robes (black)  
2\. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear  
3\. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)  
4\. One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupil’s clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk

A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot

Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling

A Beginner’s Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phylida Spore 

Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble

OTHER EQUIPMENT:

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales

Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS 

ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK

Yours sincerely,

Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus

Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions

“What’s all the hubbub?” James asked as he strolled into the kitchen.

Harry waived the letter in the air in front of his dad as he excitedly exclaimed, “My letter came!”

A large smile spread across James’ face, “Excellent! I told you it would come. We can go to Diagonally tomorrow if you want and get your supplies. Did you write back to Minerva saying you’ll be attending?”

Harry’s eyes widened, “No! I’ll do that right now!”

He quickly scribbled a note on a spare bit of parchment he had.

Nana, 

Of course I’ll be coming to Hogwarts! All you had to do was ask! See you later today!

Harry

He quickly gave the letter to the owl and sent it on its way. 

“Everyone will be here around one?” Harry asked anxiously.

“Yes,” James said, “They will. For now, do you want to open my gift? I think you’ll like it.” 

“Yeah!” Harry exclaimed, “Where is it?”

James smiled and pulled a small envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Harry, “It’s not large, but I think it’s pretty impressive.”

Harry furrowed his brow before tearing the envelope open and pulled out several pieces of paper. No, not paper, Harry realized, 6 tickets to the quidditch world cup next month. 

“Wha—Dad! How did you get these! This is amazing! Thank you!” Harry ran over and hugged James tightly around the middle.

James hugged Harry back, “It was easy, honestly. They weren’t too expensive. But I figure you can take Remus, Sirius, Ron, Ginny, and Draco.”

Harry pulled back from James and frowned as he counted, “But, dad, that’d make seven people and there are only six tickets. What about you?”

“Ah, right,” James said slyly, “I forgot about the second half of your surprise.”

“Second half?”

“I don’t need a ticket because I’ll be staring as the lead chaser for England in the match. Portree made it this year!”

“What?” Harry exploded with excitement, “You’ve got to be bloody joking! No way! That’s amazing! But you had to have known for a while—how did you keep it a secret?” 

“I won’t lie, it was hard but I managed.”

“This is amazing! Thanks dad! I can’t wait to tell everyone when they come later. Have you told Uncle Moony or Padfoot?”

“Yeah, they’ve known for a while. They’re pretty excited, too.”

“This is wicked!” Harry shouted as he headed out of the room, “I’m going to go put these away and then fly my broom until everyone gets here. Thanks dad!”

James smiled as he watched Harry run out of the kitchen still looking at the tickets in his hands. He smiled; it was going to be a good day. 

One O’clock rolled around much more quickly than Harry had anticipated. Flying had definitely helped speed up the time while he waited, but it still came faster than he had expected. 

As his friends trickled in one by one he grew more and more excited to tell them about their new August plans. He greeted the Weasleys with hugs and affection before pulling Ron and Ginny aside and excitedly relaying the news to them.

“Wow!” Ron exclaimed breathlessly, “Your dad’s team made it to the cup? Blimey, Harry, that’s wicked!”

Ginny looked up at Harry, her brown eyes alight with excitement, “I’m so happy for your dad! This is all he’s ever wanted. Are you sure you want to bring us?”

Harry’s eyes widened in shock, “Of course, Ginny. You guys are my best friends. I’m inviting Draco, too. It’ll be a blast!” 

“Speak of the git,” Ron said snidely as he motioned his head towards the driveway. 

Harry turned and saw Draco making his way up the path towards them and waived enthusiastically before turning to Ron, “Come on. I know you don’t like his family much but Draco is different and you know it. He’s been our friend for years.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t trust him. His whole family are Slytherins and you know what they say about Slytherins.”

“’There hasn’t been a single witch or wizard who went bad that wasn’t in Slytherin’,” Draco finished for Ron as he walked up to the group. 

Ron’s face turned scarlet as he turned to Draco, “Sorry, mate. I just—Slytherins are a bad lot, you know?”

Draco frowned, “Wasn’t the guy who ratted Harry’s parents out a Gryffindor?”

Harry nodded, “Yeah, he was,” he turned to Ron, “I personally don’t think that what house you’re in defines who you’re going to be. There have been plenty of good witches and wizards who were in Slytherin and plenty bad ones who weren’t. I mean, look at Merlin. He was a Slytherin but he was one of the most notable, kind, and generous wizards in the last millennia.”

“So you would be ok if you were sorted into Slytherin?” Draco asked Harry curiously.

“Well, I mean, I guess? I don’t think I really fit with Slytherin though. I’m not cunning or ambitious or whatever. I think I’m more of a Gryffindor.”

Draco snorted, “Right. I’d rather be brainy than brawny though.”

Harry shrugged, “I don’t think Gryffindor is just brawns. Lots of smart people were in Gryffindor. Dumbledore was.”

“Dumbledore is a manipulative old coot who should have been in Slytherin if you’re asking me.”

Ginny furrowed her brow, “Where is all of this coming from, Draco? This isn’t like you—I thought you didn’t hold your Father’s values as much as this.”

Draco frowned and looked down at his feet and mumbled, “I have to. It’s the family tradition according to Father and I don’t particularly care to find out what happens if I’m not in Slytherin.”

“What’s he going to do? Disown you? So what. Then you get to come live at the Burrow. I mean, really, what’s one more? Now that Bill left for Egypt and Charlie is moving to Romania we’ll have two rooms available,” Ginny said as she laid her head on Draco’s shoulder.

“Your parents would have a fit if I just up and moved in with you guys,” Draco said, “And that’s not even taking into account how my father would react. You know, he gave me a whole speech the other week about how I can’t associate with you two anymore and how you’ll tarnish my reputation and my job prospects. It was a load of rubbish. But—I have to do what he says, don’t I?”

“Come off it!” Ginny said as she snapped her head up, “If your dad ever actually kicked you out you would definitely come live with us and I don’t want to hear another word about it!” 

Draco opened his mouth to reply but quickly closed it when he saw Harry and Ron feverishly shake their heads from behind Ginny. He sighed and said, “Why don’t we go race? Mrs. Weasley isn’t here to yell at you for flying on a broom, Ginny.”

She beamed at Draco and took his hand and headed to the pitch, “I thought you’d never ask!” 

~ID~

Under the marque the adults were congregating and enjoying beverages and barbeque cooked by Sirius. Remus had whipped up a cocktail that tasted remarkably like pink lemonade. Even Sirius had had a glass or two. While he was still being careful about how much alcohol he was consuming, Sirius had gotten to the point in his therapy where he felt he had good enough limits established for himself to be able to safely enjoy a drink or two at social gatherings. He had been working hard on healing the wounds from not only his time in Azkaban but also his childhood. But he still wasn’t ready to discuss that with anyone. 

Sirius looked up and watched as Remus and Tonks were engrossed in a conversation about defensive techniques. Tonks had seemingly outgrown her teenage crush on Remus, and the two were so deeply engrossed in conversation it was as if everyone else around them no longer existed. 

Sirius jumped, started, when Charlie appeared next to him and leaned back on the counter top of his outdoor kitchen.

“She still has a huge crush on him, you know,” Charlie said.

Letting out a bark like laugh, Sirius replied, “No way. That’s too fucking perfect. You’re joking, right?”

Charlie shook his head, “Nope. She’s had a crush on him since the beginning of third year. Sometimes I think she thinks I’ll just, I don’t know, go away? But she’s never had eyes for anyone else.”

“Wasn’t she dating that bloke from your year? Uh, she told me his name…Sam? Sean?”

“Shane. And, yeah, but they’re still dating. Have been for a while. She likes him well enough but I know she still has eyes for Professor Lupin. She’d drop Shane in a heartbeat if she thought she had a chance with Mr. Sexiest Professor.”

“Sexiest Professor?” Sirius asked, his eyes alight with mischief.

Charlie nodded and laughed, “Oh yeah. Someone in our year sent around this questionnaire thing about professors so we could vote on favorites for different categories like funniest professor, professor I’d most like to fuck, best professor, and sexiest. Professor Lupin swooped in and nicked the sexiest and most like to fuck categories. Not that he’s aware of that, I’m sure.”

Sirius rubbed his hands together at the prospect of this information, “Oh no. But he will by the end of the day, I promise you that.”

“What exactly do you plan on doing?” Charlie asked curiously.

“I think Professor Lupin is due up for a new chance at dating, don’t you?”

Charlie smiled maliciously, “If that’s the case, I’m sure that we could use a secret weapon at our disposal.”

“Secret weapon?”

“Gred and Forge, of course!”

Sirius smiled as he looked at Tonks and Remus talking closely to one another, this was going to be interesting, “Do you have a copy of him winning this?”

“Hell yeah!” Charlie replied, “It’s in my trunk at home. I can floo back and grab it. What are you going to do?”

“You’ll see,” Sirius said evasively, “Go grab it, ok?”

Charlie nodded and dashed back to the Manner to floo back to the Burrow while Sirius eyed Tonks and Remus for a moment before headed over.

“Well!” he said as he approached them, “Aren’t you two just adorable?”

Remus frowned, “What do you want, Sirius? We’re in the middle of a conversation.”

Sirius shrugged before settling himself between the two, “Just wanted to come see what you’re up to. Oh! And to remind you that this lovely woman is of age now if you, you know, had any interest in that.” Sirius wiggled his eyebrows suggestively as he indicated Tonks, “And what’s this I hear about you being rated professor I’d most like to fuck and sexiest professor this year, Moony? You didn’t mention that!”

Remus’ mouth dropped open, “What are you going on about?”

“Apparently,” Sirius said as he saw Charlie dashing back to him, “You were rated sexiest professor and most like to fuck by Tonks’ graduating class. Isn’t that right, Charlie?”

Charlie nodded and held up the paper, “Sure did! I have the Gryffindor rankings here! Lupin won both categories unanimously. I mean, that’s saying something since about half those votes were from the guys, too.”

“Wow, Moony, you’re a hot commodity over at Hogwarts!” Sirius whistled, “Doesn’t that just make you think, Tonks? I mean, he is down right sexy. And a unanimous vote, eh?”

Tonks blushed, “Well, I mean, it was between him and literally every other professor and, no offense, I wasn’t going to choose Snape. When’s the last time he washed that greasy hair of his?”

“Too true, too true. Ol’ Snivellus always had a fear of shampoo. What do you think, Moony? Seems like you could have your pick of the Hogwarts graduating class now that they aren’t students and are of age,” Sirius asked suggestively as he eyed Tonks.

Tonks blushed and Remus flustered, “Sirius I hardly think that’s appropri—”

“It definitely is! They’ve graduated and they’re of age now. It’s time to make a move, Moony!” 

“I don’t think—”

“Hey, Charlie, want another one of those cocktails?” Tonks piped up, “Let’s go get one!”

“Uh, sure!” 

Tonks grabbed Charlie by the ear and drug him over to the drink table. Remus and Sirius could see her giving him a stern lecture while eyeing the both of them reproachfully. Remus turned to Sirius.

“What the hell, Sirius. What is your deal?”

“She still likes you. I think you should go for it!”

“She’s 18! Absolutely not.” 

“So what?” 

“So—so what? I’m 31! That’s a 13-year age difference. It’s inappropriate. It’s—it’s unconscionable. And on top of all of that, as if the age gap wasn’t enough, I’m a werewolf. Why on Earth should someone like her be straddled with that stigma? How is that in any way going to advance her dreams of being an auror?”

Sirius shrugged, “I think you’re just scared.”

“What?” Remus spluttered, “What in the world are you talking about?”

“I mean, your biggest reasons are the age, and let’s face it who cares about that? And the fact that you’re a werewolf. But, let’s be real, if anyone can handle that it’s going to be Tonks. She’s spunky and she’s going to be highly trained in combat and defense as well as magical creatures and dangerous situations. She can take care of herself.”

“Out of the question,” Remus said quietly, “Absolutely not. I won’t tie someone like her down with my issues.”

“Whatever, Moony. I think you’ll come around. She’s too hardheaded to let you go,” Sirius said before standing up and headed back to the grill. 

As Remus watched him go he couldn’t help but wonder what Sirius was on about. The age gap between him and Tonks should have been enough for any reasonable person to understand why they would never work but his lycanthrope on top of that was basically icing at that point. Yet, he thought as he looked back over at Tonks, at her long, toned legs, flat and exposed belly, full bum and plump, perky breasts, Remus couldn’t help but find her extremely attractive. He watched as she turned to look at him, her brown eyes smiling as she waived at him. He waived back, lost in those dark eyes. 

“Fuck,” he whispered to himself as he tore his eyes away, “Fuck, fuck fuck.”

Shaking his head, Remus turned and walked towards James and Minerva who were engrossed in a conversation regarding vanished objects and attempted to follow the conversation. But try as he might his thoughts continuously wandered back to the lovely metamorphmagus behind him as he silently reminded himself why he could never have her.


	30. Chapter Thirty: Diagon Alley

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted on Fanfiction.net
> 
> I do not own any of the material within this chapter. The scenes and characters depicted belong exclusively to JK. Rowling!

Chapter Thirty: Diagon Alley

James made his way out to the quidditch pitch where he knew he would find Harry flying around and throwing a ball back and forth to himself. He smiled when he caught sight of Harry doing loop-d-loops; the boy was just a natural on a broom. 

After a few minutes Harry caught sight of James and waived from his boom in the air, “Morning, dad!”

Even after 8 years of hearing that, having Harry call him dad still sent a warm, happy feeling through James, “Morning! Did you want to go get your school things today? I have the day off.”

“Sure!” Harry shouted, “But can you throw the quaffle with me for a bit first? I want to practice for next season!” 

James shrugged, “Why not? I’ll grab my broom, give me a minute.”

In his excitement, Harry threw both of his hands in the air and whooped, “Sweet! Thanks dad!”

Smiling and shaking his head, James made his way to the broom shed before heading up towards Harry. He stopped several yards away and tossed Harry the quaffle. 

Somehow the morning seemed to slip by them both and before they knew it, it was after 12. Harry had convinced James to run several drills with him and they had had a good time doing it. They decided to quickly eat lunch before headed to Diagon Alley. 

Later that afternoon James took Harry to the Leaky Cauldron by side-along apparition. They appeared just on the stoop of the pub so as not to be seen by the muggles passing by. Harry had always thought that the pub was grubby-looking, but today, as it was filled with witches and wizards, he felt it looked even more so. 

As the door closed behind them Harry looked around the room and noticed how a buzz it was. Several paper nodded absently at James as they walked through the pub but it was Tom who managed to capture the interest of the surrounding patrons. 

“Afternoon, Lord Potter. What brings you out to Diagon Alley?” Tom asked as he reached for a glass behind the counter. 

James looked around the pub nervously, “Just doing a bit of shopping, Tom.”

Tom peered around James, noticing Harry for the first time, “Good lord, is this—can this be—”

James frowned as the pub suddenly went completely still, the silence deafening Harry as he glanced around. 

“Bless my soul,” Tom whispered, “Harry Potter…what an honor. Lord Potter, you’ve been hiding this boy all these years?”

Tom hurried out from behind the bar and rushed towards Harry, his hand extended and tears in his eyes, “Welcome back, Lord Potter, welcome back.”

Harry didn’t know what to say. He stood there, uncomfortably with his hand being violently shaken, as everyone in the pub stared at him, mouths agape. He noticed the woman in the corner with the pipe had yet to realize it had gone out. James was attempting to pull Harry away from Tom, mumbling something about doing their shopping. But before James could manage to get Harry out the side door there was a great scraping of chairs and the next thing he knew he was surrounded by people, his hand being shaken and a great many of them patting his back, everyone was trying to get a touch of Harry Potter. 

He met a Doris Crockford several times as she kept coming back up to him, and Dedalus Diggle. He also met a man wearing a very strange piece of cloth on his head.

“P—P—Potter,” the man stammered, “c—can’t t—tell you how p—pleased I am to meet you. I’m p—p—professor Quirrell, the d—defense against the d—dark a—arts p—professor at h—h—h—Hogwarts. You’ll be g—getting all your equipment I suppose? I’ve g—got to p—pick up a new b—book on vampires, m—myself.” He looked terrified at the very thought. 

The patrons of the Leaky Cauldron didn’t let Professor Quirrell have Harry to himself for long. After speaking to him, it took James nearly ten minutes to get out the side door, dragging Harry behind him. James frowned as the finally got the door shut and turned to Harry.

“I’m so sorry, Harry. I thought—I thought keeping you out of the limelight over the last decade would have deafened this some but…I guess I was wrong. I didn’t realize people would act like that when they saw you.”

Harry shrugged, “I don’t know why they think I’m so special. I didn’t do anything.”

“It’s just the fact that you survived that—that night,” James said quietly, “Well, anyway, it won’t be so bad in Diagon Alley because there will be more people to blend into. Just, cover your scar with your hair and I think we’ll be ok. Actually, why don’t I just hide it magically for a few hours. That way we can try to avoid another run-in like that.”

“I’d like that,” Harry said enthusiastically. The idea of people not being able to stare at his scar excited and pleased him. 

He smiled as James waived his wand over his forehead, practically bouncing while he waited for his dad to complete the spell work. 

When James had finished Harry beamed at him, “It’s hidden?”

“For now, yeah,” James said, “Now, let’s get on with it so we can get back home. I can’t even imagine what your first day at school is going to be like, now.”

Harry frowned at the idea but then said, “I think it’ll be ok. I’ll have Ron, Fred, George, Percy, and Draco at school with me.”

James nodded, “That’s very true, Harry. I’m sure they’ll help to divert attention away from you.”

Harry nodded as James turned to the brick wall beside them and tapped the brick to open the doorway. As they stepped through, Harry turned and watched the archway shrink back into place, turning back into a solid brick wall. He grinned as he took in the sights of Diagon Alley and wished he had about eight more sets of eyes. He had only been to Diagon Alley once or twice as a young boy—for the most part James had taken Harry shopping in muggle London for clothes or went by himself to the wizarding shops to keep Harry out of direct sight of the magical community. 

He turned his head in every direction as they walked up the street in an attempt to be able to see everything. He turned as he heard a low, soft hooting from a dark shop labeled, Eeylops Owl Emporium—Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown, and Snowy. He noticed several boys had their noses pressed against a window with broomsticks in it. He couldn’t help but stop and make his way over to the window and peer inside. Excitement filled him as he caught sight of the new Nimbus Two Thousand. 

James had made it several shops away before he realized that Harry wasn’t with him anymore. Panic filled him as he searched the crowd for a head of messy black hair. When he didn’t immediately see him, he turned on his heel and quickly walked back down the road as he searched for him. Finally, James caught a glimpse of that Harry standing outside of Quality Quidditch Supplies admiring the latest Nimbus broom.

“Harry, you can’t wander off like that. I thought something had happened to you!” James said in a low whisper.

Harry furrowed his brow in confusion before he realized what happened, “I’m sorry, dad. I got distracted by the broom. Isn’t it beautiful? It’s supposed to be the best. Have you ever ridden one?” 

“Aye. The whole team has one for matches. We aren’t allowed to take them with us though; they’re too expensive.”

Harry nodded, “Yeah, two thousand galleons is a little much for a broom I’d never use. But blimey, wouldn’t it be a dream to ride…”

James nudged him in the side with his elbow, “You know, if you asked your old man nicely, I bet you could take a turn on his Nimbus.”

Eyes widening in excitement, Harry exclaimed, “That would be so cool! Can I, dad? Please?” 

“I have team practice every day this week for the world cup—pick a day and Sirius or Remus can bring you out to the pitch for a little while to fly, ok?”

“Yes! Oh, this is going to be so cool! Wait until Ron, Ginny, and Draco hear about this. They’ll be so jealous!” 

“Come on, we still have a ton of shopping to do today.”

Harry nodded and followed James away from the shop and back onto the busy lane. As they made their way down the busy road, James caught sight of an overly large, hairy man in a moleskin overcoat. The man turned around and noticed James and Harry standing there and beamed at them before awkwardly making his way towards them.

“’Ello there James, Harry! Good to see yeh. What brings yeh ter Diagon Alley?” the large man asked as he beamed at Harry, “An’ look at yeh, Harry. So big! Why, I remember when you was jus’ a little baby.”

“Hello, Hagrid,” James replied, smiling, “Harry, this is Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of keys and game at Hogwarts. You’ll see him around the grounds when you start in September. How are you, Hagrid? I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“Good, good. I’m here on official Hogwarts business today,” he said as he puffed out his chest, filled to the brim with pride, “Dumbledore needs me to pick up som’it from Gringotts for him. I’m on my way over.”

“We’re on our way to Gringotts, too!” Harry exclaimed, “Maybe we can go with you? Dad?”

“Only if it’s ok with Hagrid.”

“Sure! The more the merrier I always say! Now come on, we’re burnin’ daylight we are.”

The small group made their way over to the large white building at the end of Diagon Alley. Harry was astonished at the towering, burnished bronze doors that were the entrance of the bank. He was even more shocked at the sight of the odd looking human-like creature in a scarlet and gold uniform standing at the entrance. Seeing his confusion, James leaned over and whispered to Harry, “That’s a goblin. They run and manage Gringotts. If you remember, Bill works for them as a curse breaker in Egypt.”

Harry nodded silently as he eyed the goblin’s swarthy, cleaver face and his long fingers as they passed by and into the entry way. Once inside, he noticed the words etched upon the second set of double doors:

Enter, stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed,

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay most dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there. 

Hagrid let out a soft breath before whispering, “Yeh’d be mad ter try an’ rob Gringotts.”

James nodded in agreement before pushing Harry through the second set of doors and into the main lobby of the building. They quickly made their way to the front of the queue and were escorted by a goblin to the tracks under the building. They made their way to the Potter Family Vault where James removed a large quantity of galleons, sickles, and Knuts before they moved on to vault 713 where Hagrid removed the sole object from the vault; a small, brown package. 

After the wild ride back to the top of Gringotts, the three men stood blinking in the bright sunlight. 

Harry turned to Hagrid and James and asked, “Where should we go first?”

“Might as well get yer uniform,” said Hagrid, nodding toward Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions, “If you two don’t mind, I’m going to head fer a pick me up at the Leaky Cauldron but I’d like ter come shoppin’ with yeh for ol’ times. Them Gringotts carts just don’ sit right with me.”

“Sure, Hagrid. I think you’re right. Harry, why don’t you run into Madam Malkin’s and I’ll run over to the parchment shop and get some for you and start looking at quills and ink.”

Harry nodded and set off for Madam Malkin’s shop alone, feeling nervous. As he entered the shop he looked up at the door when a bell rung, signifying his entrance. 

A squat, smiling witch dressed in mauve, who Harry assumed was Madam Malkin, cam bustling around the corner, “Hogwarts, dear?” she said before Harry could speak, “Got the lot here—another young man being fitted up just now, in fact.”

She led Harry to the back of the shop where he saw a pale faced boy with blond hair standing on the stool next to the one he had just climbed up on. Harry smiled when he recognized Draco.

“I didn’t know you were coming here today! We could have done our shopping together,” Harry said to Draco.

Draco frowned for a moment as he looked at Harry before smiling, recognition dawning on his face, “Harry! I didn’t recognize you for a minute without your scar. Where’d it go? Mother’s up at Ollivander’s looking at wands for me and Father is getting my books. I’m hoping to drag them over to the quidditch store to look at brooms. Did you want to come?”

“Oh man! They’ve got the new Nimbus in. It looked awesome. We already stopped by on our way to Gringotts. Dad said he would let me take a turn on his Nimbus this week. You can come if you want! Dad said I could watch Portree practice while I was there. 

“Oh, and my scar, right. Dad did some magic or something and hid it for while we’re shopping. Too many people were staring at me and I’m not sure why. I didn’t do anything—they shouldn’t bother with me.”

“They’re staring because you supposedly took down the Dark Lord when you were a baby. It’s pretty impressive if you ask me. But Father doesn’t like to tell the story much. I have a book about you though; interesting stuff. Anyway—I’m hoping to talk Mother into letting me buy the new Nimbus for myself. Father says it’d be a crime if I’m not picked for my house team right away.”

Harry frowned, “I thought first years weren’t allowed broomsticks?”

“Well, they’re not. But if you’re on the house team that’s a different story, you know? Are you going to try out for your house team? I wonder what house you’ll be in.”

Harry shrugged, “Dunno. I guess I’ll be in Gryffindor like my mum and dad. But I guess it doesn’t really matter in the end, does it?”

“It does if you ask my Father.”

“Do you think you’ll be in Slytherin?”

“Probably. Father says I have to be—the whole family has been. I can’t imagine what he’d do if I got sorted into Hufflepuff—he might make me leave.”

“Hey, Hufflepuff isn’t bad. Tonks was a Hufflepuff at Hogwarts and you met her, she’s really cool.”

Draco smiled, “Yeah, I guess she is. I didn’t know she was a Hufflepuff. But still, no one great comes from there.”

“I think Tonks I pretty great. And Newt Scamander, the author of one of our books, was a Hufflepuff, too. He’s pretty cool and super smart.”

“Hmm. I don’t know. I just don’t think it’s worth wondering if I’ll be in a different house—imagine what my Father would say.”

“You’re no son of mine!” Harry said in his best Lucius Malfoy impression before bursting out laughing, “Come off it, Draco! They can’t be that upset as long as you do well in classes. Your house only gets you so far in life, you know.”

“I say, look at that man!” Draco exclaimed as he nodded toward the window where Hagrid and James were standing holding large ice creams and waiving. James caught sight of Draco and indicated the ice cream, asking if he wanted one.

“That’s Hagrid, he works at Hogwarts as the gamekeeper.” 

“Oh, I’ve heard of him. My Father says he’s some sort of savage—lives in a hut on the school grounds and every now and then he gets drunk, tries to do magic, and ends up setting fire to his bed,” Draco smiled at James and nodded, indicating he would like some, too, “But, if you and Lord Potter know him and stuff, I guess he isn’t really like that, is he? He seems…nice?”

“I think he’s brilliant,” Harry said warmly, “When we’re done you can come talk to him—I think you’ll like him a lot.”

Draco smiled and Madam Malkin quickly finished hemming the boys’ robes and sent them on their way. They both gladly accepted the ice creams James and Hagrid offered them and quickly ate the cones while listening to James and Hagrid discuss local politics. Apparently, rather recently, someone in the Wizengamot had attempted to gain votes to bar any children born from non-magical families, or muggle borns, from attending Hogwarts with other wizarding children. James and Hagrid lamented the fact that a third of the group had apparently voted in favor of this idea. They couldn’t believe that, this day in age, so many people still held the notion that muggle born witches and wizards were lesser magicals because of their family history and blood. 

And then, Draco piped up, “My Father started that bill. He doesn’t believe that Hogwarts should let that sort in because they’re just not the same—they’ve never been brought up to know our ways. I personally can’t imagine not knowing about my magic or the wizarding world until the day I got my letter. I don’t know what to think of all of it though. I mean, my Father thinks the Weasleys are dirty and crude, but they’re the nicest, kindest people I’ve ever met. They’re like family to me now and I don’t understand why he would think that way about such amazing people. And Hermione is awesome even though she’s a muggle. She’s smart and kind and strong—she doesn’t need magic to be magical. So what’s so wrong about being magical and coming from a family like her’s? I just don’t understand.”

James nodded and frowned, putting his hand on Draco’s shoulder, “I understand what you mean, Draco. Sirius’ family was very much like your father. They held onto the old pure blood ways longer than they should have. Maybe you should talk to Sirius about all of this, I think he could answer your questions better and give you a deeper understanding and help you make some better decisions for yourself. I’m sure he would sit with you anytime you wanted.”

“I’d like that. I just—I love my Father but sometimes…sometimes I don’t understand why he sees some people differently and I just don’t know if that’s how it’s supposed to be,” Draco looked up when he heard someone calling his name. The table turned and saw Lucius Malfoy briskly making his way toward the group, his grey eyes dark and cold.

“Draco. Draco, what are you doing sitting here with this oaf? Haven’t I taught you better than this? Come with me, it’s time to get your wand and go.”

Draco looked back at James, Hagrid, and Harry before hanging his head and nodding, “Yes, Father. I’m sorry I wandered off. Lord Potter asked for my presence.”

“Is that so?” Lucius asked as his eyes met James’, “Well, Lord Potter, the next time you request my son’s presence I would appreciate you informing me before snatching him away. Come now, Draco.”

Lucius turned on his heel, his cloak billowing behind him, as he made his way toward the wand shop, not even looking back to be sure that Draco had followed him.

Draco looked cautiously back at Harry before he scurried after Lucius, his head down and his hands inside of his pockets as he marched obediently behind the patriarch of the family. 

Harry looked down at the remnants of his ice cream in the cup he had put it in and pushed the melted mush around while he thought. After a while, he interrupted Hagrid and James and asked, “Dad? Why does Lucius Malfoy act like he’s in charge and better than everyone else? He doesn’t even work high up in the Ministry and—actually I don’t even know what he does for a living.”

James nodded, “Yeah. See, Harry, some people, especially people who come from Pure Blood families, think that they’re better or more competent than other people just because they’re a pure blood from the sacred 28 families. The Malfoys are from the sacred 28 and he’s just a pompous jackass about it. I really hope that Draco keeps questioning his dad’s beliefs—he’s a good, smart kid and he could go places if he can get out of the bigotry shadow that is Lucius Malfoy.”

Harry’s eyes widened, “Uh, dad?”

“What?” James asked, confused. Then, it dawned on him, “Fuck, ugh! Darn it. Sorry, Harry. I shouldn’t have sworn, but, oh fuck it. You’re starting school and, if I’m honest with myself, I was swearing at about your age. It was the ‘cool’ thing to do. So, I don’t really care. Just—just use the words appropriately and out of earshot of any adults. I won’t get you out of trouble with McGonagall if she happens to hear you cuss. Fair?”

Shrugging, Harry replied, “Seems fair to me.” 

“Alright. So, what else is on your list that we need to get? I stopped off and got you parchment, quills, ink—I got you some black ink and some cool color changing stuff. And I also got your potion ingredients, phials, scales, and a cauldron. It’s all shrunk in my pockets. Oh, and I picked up a pretty neat trunk for you. I think you’ll enjoy it. I wish I had one like this when I was in school. Did you get your robes?”

“Yeah,” Harry handed James a brown package with his robes in them, “Got them all and Madam Malkin hemmed them for me. I also got my gloves and hat and stuff from in there. She said it was the ‘First-Year Special’.”

“Good. So that leaves your books and wand. Why don’t we go grab your books so we can give the Malfoys a chance to clear out of the wand shop. It’s a pretty small store and I don’t think we would all fit in there.”

Hagrid stood up and grinned, “I’ll meet yer at Ollivander’s. I ‘ave a quick errand ter run.”

“Ok, Hagrid. We’ll see you in a bit, then,” James said as he and Harry stood up and threw their trash out. 

The small group split up and Harry and James made their way to Flourish and Blotts to get the books on Harry’s list. It didn’t take them long to find the required texts, and Harry had somehow managed to convince James to buy several others to go along with them. He convinced James to buy him not only Quidditch Through The Ages and Quidditch: The Best 100 Plays of The 20th Century but also several books on intermediate defensive spells and defense against dark magic. James also insisted on purchasing Hogwarts: A History for Harry. He insisted that, at some point, Harry would have questions about the castle and its secrets and having his own copy of the book would come in handy during his seven years there. Harry had simply accepted the book without any real intention of reading it.

As they made their way to the wand shop, they ran back into Hagrid who was now carrying a cage with a beautiful, snowy owl inside of it. 

“Hagrid, she’s beautiful! But what do you need an owl for? Doesn’t Hogwarts have some?” Harry asked as he poked his finger through the cage and let the owl lightly nip his finger. 

“Yeh they do. But I thou’, Harry jus’ had a birthday an’ I didn’t get him anything. So, happy birthday, Harry!” Hagrid said as he held the cage out to him, beaming. 

“Happy—she’s for me?”

“Hagrid, you didn’t have to get Harry anything. This is so nice. Are you sure?”

“She’s so beautiful!” Harry said as he stroked the owl’s feathers, “Can I keep her, dad?”

“I’m sure, James! Don’ mention it. It’s the least I can do. ‘Sides, owls are dead useful, carry yer mail an’ everythin’. You two can write letters after Harry leaves. Now let’s get Harry a wand.”

Harry beamed as he took the cage from Hagrid and smiled at the owl. Not being a fan of the light, she stuck her head under her wing and promptly fell asleep in the cage as they headed towards Ollivander’s. 

A magic wand had been what Harry had been looking forward to most during this shopping trip. Sure, he had learned how to do some spells wandlessly over the last three years, but he knew that those spells would be much more powerful with a wand and he could do more spells, more easily, once he had one. He was looking forward to practicing new spells once he was at Hogwarts. 

As they walked up to the store, Hagrid stopped and said he was going to head back to Hogwarts because the wand shop was much too small to fit him into it as well as James and Harry. They all bid their goodbyes before James and Harry made their way into the shop.

Harry looked around the room with boxes upon boxes of wands staked precariously on nearly every available surface up to the ceiling. For some reason, the back of his neck prickled. He felt like the very dust and silence in there seemed to tingle with some secret magic. 

“Good afternoon,” said a soft voice. Harry and James both jumped at the surprising sound. 

An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop. 

“Hello, Mr. Ollivander,” James said, “We’re here to get Harry a wand for school.”

“Ah, yes,” said Mr. Ollivander, “Yes, yes. I thought I’d be seeing you soon. Harry Potter.” It wasn’t a question. “You have your mother’s eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work.”

A pang of sadness went through James as he thought about Lily and her wand; the fact that so many years ago she, too, had come into this shop to buy it. Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry and Harry found himself wishing that Mr. Ollivander would blink; those silvery eyes were starting to creep him out. 

Mr. Ollivander looked back at James, those silver orbs boring into him, “Your father, here, on the other hand, favored, and I assume he still does, a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say you favored it—it’s really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course.”

Mr. Ollivander had come so close to Harry that they were almost nose to nose. Harry could see himself reflected in those silvery eyes.

“Hmm. I can’t seem to find…yes, it’s hidden, here,” Mr. Ollivander said as he tapped the place on Harry’s forehead where his scar was hidden by magic. “I was sorry to hear that I sold the wand that did it,” he said softly. “Thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and in the wrong hands…well, if I’d known what that wand was going out into the world to do…”

He shook his head and turned back to James, “So, we’ll be getting Mr. Potter here set up with a wand, then?”

“Yes. It’s his first one.”

“Good, good. Hmmm,” he pulled out a tape measure with silver markings from his pocket, “Which is your wand arm?”

“Er—well, I’m right-handed,” Harry said as he held up his right hand and examined it.

“Yes, hold it out, if you would.”

Mr. Ollivander measured Harry’s arm fro shoulder to finger and then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit, and around his head. As he measured, he explained to Harry the different cores he uses for wands and how no two wands he makes are alike. He also explained that Harry will never get as favorable results with another’s wand as he would his own. Soon he wandered off and grabbed several boxes from somewhere off a shelf and unboxed one, holding it out to Harry.

“Right the, Mr. Potter. Try this one. Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible. Just take it and give it a wave.”

Harry took the wand and, feeling foolish, waived it around a bit, but Mr. Ollivander snatched it out of his hand almost at once.

“Now this. Maple and phoenix feather. Seven inches. Quite whippy. Try—”

Harry tried—but he had hardly raised the wand when it, too, was snatched back. 

“No, no—here, ebony and unicorn hair, eight and half inches, springy. Go on, go on, try it out.”

Harry tried. And tried. He had no idea what Mr. Ollivander was waiting for. The pile of rejected wands continued to grow larger and taller as the time went on. But the more wands he tried, the happier Mr. Ollivander seemed to become. 

“Tricky customer, eh? Not to worry, we’ll find the perfect match here somewhere—I wonder, now—yes, why not—unusual combination—holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple.”

Harry took the wand. He felt a sudden warmth in his fingers. He raised the wand above his head, brought it swishing down through the dusty air and a stream of red and gold sparks shot out from the end like a firework, throwing dancing spots of light on to the walls. James clapped excitedly, throwing a fist into the air and Mr. Ollivander cried, “Oh, bravo! Yes, indeed, oh very good. Very good. Well, well, well…how curious…how very…curious…”

Mr. Ollivander quickly boxed Harry’s new wand back up and wrapped it, still muttering to himself, “Curious…curious…”

“Sorry,” Harry said, “But what’s curious?”

James placed a hand on Harry’s shoulder and squeezed, “Mr. Ollivander, is there an issue with Harry getting this wand? Should he find another?”

“No, no, he should take this wand. It’s just—I remember every wand I ever sold. Every single wand. It so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather is in Mr. Potter’s wand, gave another feather—just one other.” James’ eyes widened, sudden realization dawning on him as he stared at the wand now wrapped in brown paper, “It is very curious indeed that Mr. Potter should be destined for this wand when its brother—why, its brother gave him that scar.

“Yes, thirteen-and-a-half inches. Yew. Curious indeed how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember…I think we must expect great things from you, Mr. Potter…After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things—terrible, but great.”

Harry stared at the wand now being passed to James as it was paid for, wondering exactly how much he liked the idea that he shared that connection with Voldemort and wondered exactly what that could mean for him in the future.


	31. Chapter Thirty-One: The Quidditch World Cup

Chapter Thirty-One: The Quidditch World Cup

Harry and Draco sat in the stands while they watched Portree running drills. They took turns sharing the pair of omnioculors James had brought along with them, each oohing and ahing at the appropriate times. They watched excitedly as the team practiced new drills and formations for the world cup and as James scored goal after goal atop his new Nimbus Two-Thousand. 

Draco and Harry discussed the broom’s specs, each excited to have their turn riding it. It was only a few hours later when the team was finally dismissed and landed on the pitch to head into the changing rooms. It was then that the two boys quickly made their way down from the stands and onto the pitch to meet James. 

Sweaty and tired, James smiled at the boys and hugged both of them, “What’d you two think? Think we stand a chance at beating Russia next week for the cup?”

“You guys were wicked Mr. Potter! I loved the new formations and did your seeker do the Wronski Feint? I’ve been trying to master that move for ages but I keep crash landing,” Draco gushed.

“Yeah, he’s our secret weapon, if I’m being honest. He’s a fresh face and he’s been saving some of his more complicated moves for the cup. Russia won’t know what hit them!”

“I can’t wait to see it! can we have a go on your broom now, dad?”

“Sure thing, kid. Who gets to go first?”

“I do!” Harry and Draco said simultaneously before looking at each other.

“Wanna wand, potion, and parchment for it?” Draco asked, holding out his fist.

“Deal,” Harry said as he held out his, “On three. One, Two Three!”

Draco opened his hand and pointed his finger, indicating a wand while Harry closed his fist as a potion. Draco whooped and grabbed the broom from James’ outstretched hands and took off, zooming around the pitch while crying out in glee. Harry watched jealously as Draco did loop-d-loops in the air while he sat on the bench with James. 

“It looks like it flies like a dream. I can’t believe I didn’t throw parchment.”

“You’ll get your turn, Harry. I promise. Just because Draco got to go first doesn’t mean you won’t get a turn.”

Harry sighed, “I know. I’m just so excited to try the broom! But he looks like he’s having a good time.”

“And I’m sure he is. But he’ll be done soon. Until then, why don’t we talk about school. Are you excited to start at Hogwarts?”

“Yeah. Nervous, too.”

“Why’s that?”

“Well, what if Draco, Ron and I end up in different houses? I mean, I’m pretty sure Ron will be in Gryffindor and Draco will be in Slytherin, so we’ll already be in different houses. But where will I be?”

“Wherever you want to be.”

Harry looked at his father, his eyes curious and confused, “What do you mean? You always told me that the hat puts us in the houses we should be in. That doesn’t sound like I have much of a choice.”

“Well, no. But, the hat will put you in the house with the traits you value most. So, if you value being brave and helpful and strong over anything else, you’ll be in Gryffindor. Whereas if you value being loyal or friendship over being strong or cunning, you’ll be in Hufflepuff. Just because you have a trait from another house, doesn’t mean you’ll end up there. Take Sirius for example. Sure, he’s cunning and intelligent and loyal to his friends, but he values the strength and courage it takes to do the right thing, be a good person, over all of those other things. And Tonks; she’s brave beyond belief! And smart. You have to be to be an auror. But she’s loyal to a fault—she would do anything for her friends, family, and sometimes strangers, to make sure they’re safe and taken care of even at her own expense. So, one’s traits don’t matter nearly as much as what they value in themselves when it comes to being sorted. So, if you value being intelligent or you value loyalty or bravery or ambition and innovation, that will determine your house.”

“I always thought you were put in the house your family has always been in,” Draco whispered from behind James. Both Potters jumped as neither had noticed Draco landing near them or listening in. 

James turned and shook his head, “No. I mean, sure, families are typically placed in the same house, but not always. Take Sirius for example. I told you before that his whole family were Slytherins, but Sirius was a Gryffindor. That was a huge thing when we were kids because, having a Black in Gryffindor was absolutely unheard of. But Sirius was meant to be a Gryffindor—he doesn’t have a bone of ambition in his body and he couldn’t care less about moving up the ranks in a job let alone having a job. Just because your family has always been in Slytherin doesn’t mean you have to be. What do you value, Draco?”

Draco thought to himself for a moment, his grey eyes distant as he was lost in his own head, before he spoke, slowly, “My family and friends…books. I like to read books and learn. I think, communication is important. Helping people and teaching them. I like astronomy. What does that say about me?”

James shrugged, “Whatever you want it to mean. I do think its progress that you’ve learned how to think critically and be open minded. That’s not something a lot of kids your age can claim.”

Draco nodded and then quickly changed the subject, he didn’t want to think about the sorting, “Harry it’s your turn on the broom. It’s a blast.”

“Brilliant!” Harry exclaimed as he grabbed the broom and ran off before turning back to James, “Thanks, dad.”

“Go have fun kiddo. Draco, why don’t you sit with me, did you want to talk about something else?”

“I’ve been reading some muggle books lately. Don’t tell Father, though. He doesn’t know.”

“My lips are sealed. Why don’t you tell me about them?”

Draco smiled softly and began excitedly telling James all about the books he’s read. It wasn’t long before Harry’s turn was over and the sun was setting and it was time to head back to the Manner. Draco and Ron were staying the night that night so Sirius and Remus could take them to the where the cup would be held early the next morning. James was staying with the team near the event. By the time they got home, Ron was waiting for them out back in the pool. Draco and Harry decided to join him and they had a swim in the dark while little orbs of light floated in the air around them. 

The boys were woken up early to take the Portkey to Russia where they would stay in a wizarding hotel until the match the next day. Because of the time zone differences, Sirius and Remus had opted to go a day early so they had the chance to catch up with the time changes. It didn’t work out too well for them. The morning of the match everyone woke up grumpy and tired because of the jetlag. Despite this, they were all excited for the game that would start in a few hours. 

Remus made eggs and bacon for everyone which the boys scarfed down—you’d think no one had fed them in days. As they ate, Harry and Draco avidly discussed the stats of the different players on each team, both speculating who was going to win today. Ron was supervising the debate, supplementing statistics and facts as necessary. Harry speculated that Scotland (Portree) would score the most goals that day while Russia came in for the win.

“Come on! You have to admit that Zarodov has been on point this season. I mean, did you see his Double Ended Twist Back in the preliminary match against New Zealand? He faked out Sanders and still managed to snag the snitch from out from under the keeper’s nose. I love dad’s team, but McBride doesn’t stand a chance if they go head to head.”

Draco shook his head, “No way. McBride has been holding back all season, Mr. Potter said as much, didn’t he, Ron?”

“Yeah! Mr. Potter told us that their coach has been deliberately forcing McBride to hold back so they could use never before seen plays today. But I don’t know how much that will help them. I kind of agree with Harry, I don’t think McBride is a match for Zarodov, but it’ll come to who sees the snitch first, won’t it?”

“I mean, I can agree with that, but I still think McBride has the sharper eyes and that’s going to matter most today. Especially since Scotland’s chasers have been performing substantially better than Russia’s. I think they’ll be up enough that, even if Zarodov gets the snitch, they’ll have enough points to win. I mean, Levin has more holes lately than swiss cheese does.”

Ron snorted, “Please! Those have been calculated missed goals by Levin to distract the team so Zarodov could search for the snitch without being attacked by the beaters.”

“Yeah, well—”

“Alright boys, that’s enough,” Sirius said as he strode into the room, “It’s time to head out for the match. Are you guys ready?”

“Yeah!” all three boys shouted. 

The group finally headed out of their hotel room and towards the pitch. They got lucky that the match this year was fully encased within a wizarding area in Russia. It allowed for spectators to be housed in hotels and houses rather than having to camp out and hope muggles don’t make their way into the match area. 

The closer they got to the stadium, the more venders there were selling memorabilia for the game. Each boy had brought some pocket money for souvenirs which was quickly spent on their way to the game. Ron had purchased a large hat displaying Portree’s colors of purple and gold as well as a large poster depicting the first-string players for Portree. Harry had bought the same poster that Ron did as well as a set of omnioculors and a noise maker that allowed him to project his voice. He was hoping to shout words of encouragement to James. And Draco bought a Portree team jersey that was magically altered to have his last name on the back. Both Harry and Ron were envious of Draco’s purchase, but neither had seen the stand before they bought their items.

With all three boys happy with their purchases, the group made their way into the stadium and up to the Potter Family Box. Each team member had a box on a different level of one of the stands—James’ box was nearly as top as you could go, with only seeker McBride’s box being higher. 

Harry, Ron, and Draco waited patiently and watched excitedly as each team’s mascots displayed themselves before the start of the game. Harry was practically on the edge of his seat when the teams started flying out.

“Good morning folks!” a man from somewhere in the stands said, his voice magically magnified, in a thick, Russian accent, “Now that the team mascots have had their time to shine, it’s time to announce the team members! And here comes Scotland with McCormack, McCormack, McBride, Potter, Smith, Adwell, and Bazley! And for Russia comes Zarodov, Polakkoff, Chernoff, Eline, Dorosh, Levin, and Kristoff! Now the keepers are shaking hands and the teams are mounting their brooms and—they’re off! And Scotland’s Smith gets to the quaffle first, beating out Eline and Smith heads down the pitch towards the goal post and, oh! Takes a bludger to the head from a well-aimed shot from beater Kristoff!”

The group was watching the game, eyes glued on the sky, as they listened to the announcer. They were high enough up that they didn’t need much magnification to see the game, but Sirius had loaned Ron his omnioculors and Draco had brought his own so each boy could watch in excruciating detail. 

Harry had slowed down his omnioculors so he could rewatch the bludger contact from Kristoff to Smith.

“And Chernoff gets the quaffle and she’s making her way down the field. She’s up to McCormack who’s trying to predict which hoop—! And McCormack stops the shot!”

Harry, who had only just seen Chernoff get the quaffle, looked at Ron and Draco, “Wait, what?”

“If you’re not going to watch in regular speed then you’re going to miss stuff,” Draco said as a matter of fact.

Harry quickly turned his omnioculors back to regular speed and continued watching the game. 

“And Potter caught the quaffle, nice dodge of a bludger by him, and, oh! Good hit, Dorosh! But not good enough to hit the Potter In The Wind! And Potter’s at the goal hoops and he shoots—and he scores! 10 points to Scotland!”

The game continued in the same fashion for nearly 5 hours. Each team had continuously scored goals, but Scotland was up by 150 points with a score of 410 to 560. James had scored nearly 300 points for Scotland but spectators could tell he was beginning to tire as the hours drew on. Harry had begun hoping that the snitch would be caught soon or else they would call in the reserve players. 

“And Polakkoff passes to Eline who passes back to Polakkoff who throws the quaffle over Potter’s head to Chernoff who shoots! And misses. Ah well, it was a fabulous play by—wait! Where’s Zarodov?”

Draco quickly scanned the skies for the Russian seeker, unable to find him before the announcer called, “He’s seen the snitch! Seeker Zarodov dives; where’s seeker McBride? Surely he’s noticed Zarodov was on the chase. There he is!”

Draco watched as McBride flew up behind Zarodov, but not fast enough, as Zarodov reached out his hand and grasped the little golden ball. 

“He’s caught the snitch!” the announcer shouted as Zarodov raised his fist triumphantly, “Russia’s wo—wait, no! Russia has tied for the world cup! The score is 560 to 560! What a game!”

Harry frowned, “What happens if they tie?”

Draco shrugged, “It depends on the coaches. They can choose to do a shoot-out or a releasal of a snitch. Scotland would be better doing a shootout because their keeper has been on point. But Russia would do better with a releasal.”

“The coaches have met for deliberations and I’m receiving word that they have flipped a coin in order to decide on how to proceed. And Russia has won the toss! There will be a releasal of the snitch and it will be up to Zarodov and McBride to secure the win for their team!

“And the referee has brought out a new snitch, his hand gloved, and both seekers have already taken their places in the air. And the snitch has been released! 

“Look at them go. McBride’s form is on point this evening. Look at how he’s handling his broom. And, yes! Both seekers have seen the snitch! It’s going to be close, fans. And they’ve both reached out and—”

The crowd cheered as Zarodov raised his fist triumphantly as McBride was still scratching at the back of his hand. And just like that, it was over. And it had been an amazing game.

The boys waited anxiously after the game for James to come back to the hotel room. They didn’t have to wait long before James came walking in the door, his hands in his pockets and his head down. 

“Dad!” Harry exclaimed, “That game was awesome! You guys were so good out there! And the number of goals you scored was wicked!”

“Mr. Potter, is there any way you would be willing to sign my poster?” Ron asked James sheepishly as he held up his poster.

“And my jersey?” Draco asked.

James gave the three of them a sad smile, “Sure thing boys.”

“And, is there any way the rest of the team would sign too? You guys were brilliant out there!” Ron exclaimed.

“I could probably swing that. If I’m honest, we could have done better out there. We should have found a way to distract the Russian seeker better so McBride had a better chance of getting the snitch. Ah well. I guess there’s always next time, right?”

“I think you were brilliant, dad. There wasn’t anything you guys could do—Zarodov was just on his game and there wasn’t a chance he wasn’t going to get the snitch. McBride did everything he could.”

James shrugged as he signed Ron’s poster, “I guess you’re right. We’ll just have to train harder next year, right guys?”

The three boys agreed and then went on dissecting the game and gushing over the new moves they saw. Harry and Draco agreed that they would have to try some of them the first chance they got. James broke into a six pack and sat with the other Marauders and enjoyed the rest of the evening, promising to take the boys to meet the rest of the team in the morning.

~ID~

Harry sat twirling his wand around in his hands by the fire in the living room at Potter Manner and found himself remembering the conversation with Mr. Ollivander. He looked at the wand in his hands and thought about the connection between his wand and Voldemort’s; it suddenly gave him the strong urge to chuck the wand into the fire and watch it burn. His hand was half way to the fire when he heard James spoke.

“Whatcha got there, sport?”

Harry froze, his eyes on the wand in front of him, unsure of what to do next, “Uh, just my wand.”

“Well, don’t hold it too close to the fire. You might accidentally drop it,” James said, frowning, “Why are you holding it that close to the fire, anyway?”

Harry ran his hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it had been, “Well, it’s just, I was thinking about what Mr. Ollivander said when we were in his shop. About how this wand is the brother of Voldemort’s wand. I just. I don’t know that I like the idea of having that kind of connection to the wand that killed mum.”

James’ eyes softened as he looked at Harry, his chest hurting with an emotion he had long tried to suppress. “I understand what you mean, Harry. But wands choose their wizard for a reason. And that wand chose you. You heard what Mr. Ollivander said, you can do great things with that wand—maybe you can make up for what Voldemort did with his.”

Harry looked back at the wand and sighed, “Maybe we can do some research into wand lore, maybe this is something that could be beneficial? There’s got to be something interesting about the fact that your wands share a core. I mean, Mr. Ollivander even said it wasn’t something that happens normally since all of his wands are unique.”

“Yeah, that could be interesting. And, the wand doesn’t feel bad in my hand, anyway.”

“It feels familiar, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah. It does.”

“Well, that’s good, then. That means the wand is really yours,” James said as he looked at Harry. Then, his eyes widened as he remembered something important, “Hey! I forgot all about it in the excitement of getting your wand but we never took a look at your trunk. And, since I know you, I bet you haven’t packed anything yet, have you?”

Harry averted his eyes, “Maybe.”

James smiled, “Come on, let’s go check it out and pack up your things. We have to leave early so that you make the train in the morning. I should have known you’d wait until the last minute to pack up.”

The two made their way up to Harry’s bedroom where all of his school things were piled in a corner in his room, most of it still covered in the brown wrappings from the stores. 

“You haven’t even opened anything?”

“No,” Harry said defensively, “I opened my wand and a few of the books. I was reading through the history book the other night. It helped me pick a name for my owl.”

“Well we can get started on unwrapping your things while you tell me that name, huh?”

Harry smiled, “Yeah,” he said as they started unwrapping his textbooks and robes, “I named her Hedwig. I saw the name in the book and I liked it. When I said it to her she seemed to like it, too, so it kind of stuck.”

“That’s a really nice name,” James said as he unwrapped Harry’s quills and ink, “I think that’s all of it. are you bringing any of your muggle clothes or books with you? I think you’ll want to dress down out of classes and such.”

“Yeah I think so. Some jeans and sweatpants will be nice. And a sweater or two. And I have a stack of books I’m going to bring. All of my Stephen King for sure and a few of the Shakespeare books. They’re on my nightstand.”

James looked up and summoned the books from the stand as well as several of Harry’s pants, shirts, and sweaters, “Ok. Now, I know you probably won’t need a lot of this trunk until you’re older, but I got a really good deal on it, I couldn’t pass it up. And I think some of it will help you stay organized, too.”

Harry furrowed his brow, “What do you mean? What’s so special about it?”

James slapped a hand on the trunk and pulled out a set of 3 keys and smiled at Harry before inserting the first one and turning it. James carefully lifted the lid of the trunk to reveal a parchment and quill organizer. It had slots for completed assignments, spare/blank pieces and rolls of parchment, a slot for empty envelopes for letters, boxes with lids for the ink so it didn’t roll around the trunk, and slots for his quills so they wouldn’t get bent. Harry’s eyes grew wide as he looked at the organizer and then looked at the size of the trunk, confused.

“Wait, where’s all the space for my bigger stuff? I mean, this is really wicked but, I mean, if it doesn’t fit my stuff…”

“This is just the beginning! This is the parchment compartment. It has space for your assignments and blank parchment and ink and stuff. Plus,” James lifted the organizer up by a thick piece of leather, everything magically staying in its place, to reveal a secret compartment big enough to hold several books, “it has a secret compartment to hold any valuables you don’t want anyone to find or know about. You can stash sweets in here if you like or money or what have you. Well, there’s a money compartment in the organizer, but you don’t have to put any there.”

“Blimey! That’s so cool! But, I still don’t see how it’ll hold all of my stuff.”

“Oh, wait, there’s more,” James said as he smiled slyly, “But first let’s fill this up with your stuff.”

They quickly filled the compartments will the appropriate objects (including Harry’s wand) and closed the lid to the trunk. Then James carefully locked the trunk and then inserted the second key and turned it before lifting the lid again revealing the trunk space Harry had anticipated but with separate compartments and spaces for his clothes, robes, and shoes, and a small book shelf type space for all of his text books. 

“Oh nice! This will hold all of my stuff nicely!” Harry exclaimed as he started filling the trunk, “How did it do that? Change compartments like that?” 

“It’s a special kind of extension charm with some transfiguration and charm work mixed it. It’s complicated stuff but it’s bloody worth it. This isn’t even all of it, there’s more!”

“What more could it have?” Harry asked as he looked around at the empty space where his school things had been, “We’ve already put everything inside of it. Well, except my muggle novels, I guess I’ll put them in that secret space.”

“No you won’t,” James said smiling as he inserted the third key into the hole and turned it before opening the lid to reveal nothing. 

Harry frowned, “There’s nothing there.”

“Look inside.”

Confused, Harry listened and poked his head over the opening to the trunk and found himself looking down on a small set of stairs leading to a room he never knew existed. He quickly pulled his head back and looked at the trunk again, confirming the fact that it was only as tall as his knees before pushing it and looking under it.

“Come off it,” he said as he looked back into the trunk, “What’s this?”

“Go inside. I’ll be right behind you.”

Harry furrowed his brow as James gestured for him to go inside of it. Taking a deep breath, Harry stood up and put one foot inside of the trunk. He felt the foot hit the first stair inside the trunk and peeked one eye out to look. He saw his foot sitting on the stair and let out a breath before putting another foot inside of the trunk, testing how much weight it could take. 

He looked back at his dad who nodded for him to continue moving down the stairs. He took another deep breath before continuing down into the trunk. 

Harry was absolutely amazed at what he saw inside of the trunk. He was looking at a small, studio apartment inside of his school trunk complete with a kitchenette complete with oven, stove, and fridge; a small lounge area with a couch, arm chair, a desk with chair, coffee table, and bookshelf; a bed in the corner with end table and dressers; and a small bathroom with a single shower. 

“Wow,” was all that managed to escape his lips. 

“Like it?” James asked as he made his way down the stairs, levitating Harry’s entire collection of muggle books and advanced defensive magic books as well as a few others he didn’t recognize, “It cost a little bit more to get the kitchen and bathroom included, and I had to buy the furniture, but I think you’ll really appreciate this feature as you get older. Especially the shower. Ron always hogs the shower when he stays the night and if you end up in a dorm with him you’ll be happy to have this if you’re ever running late. Plus, it has space for you to get away and do work or just relax and read a book. Eventually you can put a TV in here but since that won’t work at Hogwarts I waited to include that.”

While he spoke James was summoning all of Harry’s possessions into the basement room. He magically hung photos of the family, Harry and his friends, and some of Harry and Cocoa onto the walls of the room. He also brought all of Harry’s muggle clothes and had them put themselves away in the spare dressers in the room and summoned Harry’s bedspread and pillows, having themselves arrange nicely on his bed. Harry watched as all of his possessions flew into the room and settled themselves into their appropriate places. 

“I’ve magically set up the fridge so that I can send you food from ours. That way you can have snacks without sneaking out to the kitchens. I mean, you can do that, too, but this way you don’t have to. And I stocked the kitchen with anything you’ll need to cook and eat. What do you think?”

Harry took another look around the room, a wide smile spreading on his face as he realized how much it now reminded him of home. He quickly ran over and engulfed James in a large hug, holding him close for a moment.

“I love it. This is perfect. I didn’t realize how much I was going to miss you and Sirius until I saw this.”

“Oh! That’s another thing,” James said, putting his hand on his forehead, “I wanted to give you this.”

James pulled out a small, square, compact mirror from his pocket and handed it to Harry.

“Your uncles and I each had one of these when we were in Hogwarts for communication. Ours weren’t this nice, though. Just a small bit of mirror. But I thought it might be nice to be able to close it and protect the surface a bit. I’ve added you to our network so you can call us anytime you want. All you need to do is look into the mirror and say one of our names and we’ll answer. You can also leave a message by saying the name and then writing on the mirror with your finger if we don’t answer. You can still send us letters, but this should help you keep in contact with us.”

Harry reached out and accepted the mirror and smiled, “Thanks, dad. This—this means a lot. I’m going to miss you.”

James smiled sadly at Harry, “We’re going to miss you too. But you’ll be home for Christmas and Easter and then Summer. We won’t be apart for long.”

As the ascended the staircase Harry looked back at the room and smiled. He was definitely looking forward to going to Hogwarts.


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two: The Hogwarts Express

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN OR HAVE RIGHTS TO ANY OF THE DEPICTIONS, CHARACTERS, OR SCENES WITHIN THIS CHAPTER. THOSE REMAIN THE SOLE LEGAL RIGHTS OF JOANNE ROWLING AND THEIR USE WITHIN IS PURELY FOR FAN FICTIONAL/PARODY PURPOSES!*

Chapter Thirty-Two: The Hogwarts Express

8 am the next morning came more quickly than the occupants of Potter Manner expected it to. Remus had already left to get his office and classroom at Hogwarts ready a few days prior to now, but James and Sirius sat with Harry at the breakfast table. They were all quietly eating their food, each of them waiting for another to start conversation. 

“So,” Sirius said, breaking the silence, “You excited to go to school, BK?”

Harry pushed his eggs around on his plate, and shrugged, “Kinda. I feel bad leaving you guys and for leaving Ginny behind. You know, she’s going to be the only one at her house this year since all of her brothers will be at school or graduated.”

“Why don’t you write to her, then? And I bet you could talk Minnie into letting her come to visit.”

“Maybe. I’ll definitely write to her.”

“But you’ll have Ron and Draco there, plus any new friends you make,” James added. 

“Yeah. But I’m sure we won’t all be in the same house. And what happens if Draco is in Slytherin and Ron is in Gryffindor? People from those two houses just don’t keep up friendships.”

James frowned and pushed his plate away before looking at Sirius, “Should I tell him about Lily?”

“Mum?” Harry asked, perking up, “What about mum?”

“Well,” Sirius said slowly, “I don’t see why not. He’ll never run into Snivellus.”

“Who’s Snivellus?”

James snorted at the childhood name, “He was this greasy haired git from our year during Hogwarts. He had a thing for your mom. They had been friends from childhood on but when they got to Hogwarts they were sorted into different houses. Gryffindor and Slytherin. And I tell you, people never let them forget it—but that didn’t stop them from remaining friends all the way through to our 5th year.”

“Wait, don’t you spend 7 years at Hogwarts? Why did they stop being friends in 5th year?”

“Well, that was really Snivelly’s fault. He—he called her some rude names and, to be honest, they’d been off and on for a while as it was…”

“What did he call her?”

James and Sirius exchanged a look before Sirius sighed, “You’ll hear the term eventually. He called her a mudblood.”

James’ eyes flashed as Harry asked, “What does that mean?”

“A mudblood,” James spat, “means dirty blood. It’s a derogatory term for a muggle born witch or wizard.”

Harry frowned, “Why would he call her that if they were friends? Why would anyone use that term?”

“Because some pure bloods and half bloods think they’re better than muggle borns and muggles because they come from wizarding families. Basically, because they come from magic,” James explained.

“But aren’t you both pure bloods?”

“Well, yeah. But my family never cared about blood status and Padfoot here, well, that’s another story.”

Harry turned to Sirius who sighed and leaned back in his chair, “I won’t go into details with you, kid, but my family wasn’t totally awesome.”

“Grandma and Grandpa raised you, didn’t they?”

Sirius let out a bark like laugh, “Yeah, Fee and Monty basically raised me, that’s true. I lived here from about 5th year on with your dad after I left home. My parents were your traditional pure bloods. They raised me to live up to the Black family motto, Toujours Pur. My brother bought into those beliefs and went and got himself killed after he joined up with the death eaters.”

“Your brother was a death eater?!” Harry asked, shocked.

“Yeah. Old Reg joined up before he even finished Hogwarts. I did my best to keep him from joining, tried to keep him away from our parents, but…he was the perfect Black according to my father. But, anyway, I made the decision that I didn’t value the same ideals as they did long before I went to Hogwarts. I decided I valued my friends and others more than the pure blood status and I knew I had the ability to stand up to my parents for those things I valued. That’s why I was sorted into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin. But, back to Lils and Snivelly.”

James nodded, “Basically, we’re saying you shouldn’t worry about whether you can keep up a friendship with both Ron and Draco because if your mom could do it with that git for 5 years you shouldn’t have any issues keeping one with a young man like Draco.”

“But they ended up not friends in the end, right?”

“Because of his bigotry, yes. But, from what I’ve seen, Draco isn’t anything like Snivellus was. And the was isn’t occurring—it’ll be easier for you two to stay friends no matter what house he’s in.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Harry lied, “I’m going to go put the rest of my stuff in my trunk.”

“Don’t take too long. We need to leave soon so we can floo to the Leaky Cauldron and catch a taxi to the train station. I don’t want you to miss your ride.”

“Ok dad,” Harry called as he headed upstairs. 

Once in his room Harry sat down on his bed and looked at his packed trunk and Hedwig in her cage. He flopped down on his bed and the rolled over on his stomach, reaching for his end table, pulling out a letter he’d gotten early that morning. 

Harry,

Don’t worry about me, Bill and Charlie promised to come visit me a lot this year. I wish I could be going to Hogwarts with you guys though. Maybe I can sneak in in your trunk? Ha! But, seriously, they’ll make sure I’m kept company. And I can write to you and Draco and Hermione, too. 

I understand where you’re coming from. Being in separate houses would probably be hard on your friendships with Ron and Draco. But, let’s be honest, even if you and Ron are in Gryffindor and Draco ends up in Slytherin I don’t think that will stop your friendships. And why should it? Friendships shouldn’t end over something as stupid as past prejudice. I mean, really, do your houses even matter outside of Hogwarts? And why should the anger of the founders dictate how two groups of people can act with one another? And I know you—you’d never let something that stupid break up a friendship. You’re too bullheaded to let that happen!

I’ll be here if you need to talk to anyone about school. Mum says the first year is always the hardest for students but I can’t imagine how hard it’s going to be for you with how famous you are. So just remember you can always owl me if you need someone to talk to. 

Miss you already!

Ginny

Harry read over the letter a few times, letting Ginny’s words sink in. Ginny was one of the most levelheaded and reasonable people he knew—when she wasn’t angry, anyway. And she was right, he was being stupid. Why should the houses separate him from his friends when prejudice couldn’t separate his father from Sirius? And they still had no idea what house Draco would end up being in. Maybe he would be in Gryff—no that’s just wishful thinking. Harry couldn’t allow himself to be deluded into thinking Draco could be in Gryffindor, there was no way. But being in opposing houses shouldn’t stop a friendship. 

At a quarter to eleven Harry, James, and Sirius stepped out of the taxi at Kings Cross Station and started pulling Harry’s trunk and cage out of the boot of the car. 

“Hurry up, we only have 15 minutes until your train leaves,” James said as he yanked Hedwig’s cage unceremoniously from the car. She hooted at him indignantly.

Sirius ran over with a trolly and Harry helped him push his trunk onto it before they took off into the train station. 

“What’s the platform?” Harry asked.

“9 and 3/4,” James replied.

Harry glanced around the station platforms, searching for platform 9 and 3/4 but he could only find platforms 9 and 10, “Dad. I don’t see that platform. Maybe we should ask for help?”

James smiled and looked back at Harry, “Of course you can’t see it. it’s through here.”

As he spoke James casually slid through the stone archway between platforms 9 and 10 and disappeared. 

Harry’s eyes widened as he watched is father disappear into a stone archway. As he moved forward to follow suit he heard a familiar voice calling behind him.

“Hurry up, hurry up or you’ll miss the train!” Mrs. Weasley snapped at her children. 

Harry smiled at the familiar faces approaching him and waived, “Mrs. Weasley!”

She looked around, confused for a moment, before catching sight of Harry and smiling warmly at him, “Harry dear how are you?”

“Hi Harry,” Ginny said from beside her mother, blushing.

“Hey Ginny. Did you come to see us all off?” 

“Yeah. I really want to go though. Can’t I go mummy? Please?”

“No, Ginny, you’re too young. You’ll get to go next year.”

Ginny pouted as Fred piped up, “Don’t worry, Gin—”

“We’ll send you something from school—”

“Now, you two—this year you will behave yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you’ve—you’ve blown up a toilet or—”

“Blown up a toilet? We’ve never blown up a toilet.”

“Brilliant idea though, Mum.”

“Ginny, we’ll send you a toilet seat, ok?”

Ginny beamed while Mrs. Weasley looked chastisingly at her sons, “Honestly you two, it’s not funny! And look after Ron, won’t you?”

Each twin rolled his eyes before disappearing through the archway. Percy followed suit, leaving just Ron, Harry, Ginny, Mrs. Weasley, and Sirius on the muggle platform. 

“You two, go on now. If you’re worried, best take it at a run,” Mrs. Weasley said as she gestured toward the barrier. 

Harry gripped his trolly tightly and turned towards the barrier and took it at a run, closing his eyes. When he opened them his mouth dropped open as he found himself looking at a large, scarlet steam engine. He carefully made his way toward the compartments where James was standing, Ron right on his heels. He could hear Ginny complaining to her mother as they followed behind them. 

“Harry, let me help you get your trunk onto the train,” James said as he caught sight of Harry and Ron, “You too, Ron.”

“Thanks Mr. Potter!” 

“Thanks dad!” 

James quickly helped the boys get their trunks into an open compartment on the train before leading them back out to the platform to say their goodbyes. 

Mrs. Weasley had made her way over to James and Sirius. Percy made his way over to his mother, his new prefects badge shining on his chest.

“Can’t stay long, Mother,” he said, “I’m up front, the prefects have got two compartments to themselves—” 

“Oh, are you a prefect, Percy?” Fred asked, “You should have said something, we had no idea.”

“Hang on, I think I remember him saying something about it,” George added, “Once—”

“Or twice—”

“A minute—”

“All summer—”

“Oh, shut up,” Percy spat. 

“How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?” George asked.

“Because he’s a prefect,” Said Mrs. Weasley fondly, “Alright, dear, well, have a good term—send me an owl when you get there.” Mrs. Weasley kissed Percy on the Cheek before he left.

“Now, remember what I told you two. No more owls from McGonagall this term!” Mrs. Weasley chastised the twins, “And, Harry and Ron, you two have a good first term. Owl us as soon as you’re sorted!”

“Will do Mrs. Weasley. Bye dad,” Harry said as he hugged James and then Sirius, “Bye Uncle Padfoot. I’m going to miss you guys.”

James and Sirius hugged Harry back tightly, “You packed that gift we gave you?” James asked.

Harry nodded, “Yeah, I have it.”

“Ok. Be good this term. We’ll see you at Christmas.”

Harry smiled and turned to Ginny and gave her a tight hug and whispered in her ear, “Thanks for the letter. It really helped. I’ll miss you this term—visit at Christmas?”

Ginny nodded into Harry’s shoulder, hiding her cheeks from view as they grew pinker by the second. Harry quickly pulled back and engulfed Mrs. Weasley in a hug before hurrying off to the train. He and Ron made it on just as the whistle blew. They both stuck their heads out the window and waived at their parents before taking their seats. 

“So, have a good summer?” Ron asked.

“Ron. You just saw me two weeks ago.”

“Yeah, but I mean, you’ve had two weeks to have a good rest of your summer.”

Harry laughed, “Yeah, it was pretty good. Any idea where Draco is?”

Ron shook his head, “I’m sure he’ll come find us. I bet his dad put him in a compartment with those thick headed meat sacks he told us about.” 

“Oh right. I forgot his parents probably saw him off to the train.”

As if on queue Draco knocked on their compartment door and slid it open.

“Hey guys. Do you have room in here? My dad put my stuff in with those blokes Crabbe and Goyle but I’d rather not hang out with them.”

Harry scooted down on his seat to make room for Draco, “Sure! Do you need us to help you get your stuff?”

“Nah, I have it here,” Draco dragged his trunk into the compartment, “Thanks guys. I don’t know what I would have done if I had to spend the entire train ride with those two goons.”

Ron and Harry laughed with Draco as he settled in. They sat talking about what each of them missed from their summers when a rat poked his head out from Ron’s pocket.

“Uh, Ron, you have a rat in your pocket,” Draco said cautiously. 

Ron looked down and sighed, taking the rat out and holding him, “Yeah, this is Scabbers. Percy got a new owl for becoming a prefect so mum and dad couldn’t aff—I mean, I ended up with him. He’s useless, he hardly ever wakes up.” Ron’s ears went pink as he looked out the window. He seemed to think he said too much. 

Harry didn’t think there was anything wrong with not being able to afford an owl. He knew lots of people couldn’t afford things and his dad used to tell him about how the Dursleys hardly ever got him anything new, putting him in Dudley’s old, oversized clothes. Feeling that Ron would rather not have anyone commenting on Scabbers, He changed the subject. 

“So, what do you guys think of the Tornado’s chances for the world cup next year?”

This spurred enough conversation to carry the boys through to lunch when the trolly witch clattered to their compartment and slid back their door, asking if they wanted anything. Ron had pulled out some sandwiches while Harry and Draco decided to get some of everything, sharing their goodies with Ron. Eventually, his sandwiches laid forgotten on the seat while they munched on their goodies. 

Eventually, they started playing a game with the Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. They would try to guess what flavor the bean was before eating it and, if they were right, they would get to choose the next bean the person ate. If they were wrong, they had to eat five beans at once. Those flavor combinations were beyond horrid. At one point Draco ate a combination of mint, vomit, pepper, tutti-frutti, and lemon. It was not pleasant. 

While he watched Draco choke down that combination, Harry opened a chocolate frog. He got another Dumbledore card but he read it anyway, always interested in what they had to say even though they never changed. 

The boys looked up when there was a knock on their compartment door. They watched as a round-faced boy opened it and poked his head in.

“Sorry to bother you—Harry, is that you?”

Harry furrowed his brow before recognizing the boy, “Neville! How are you?”

Neville opened the door the whole way and made his way into the compartment, “I’m doing ok. How are you? I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“I’m good. Have you met Ron Weasley and Draco Malfoy yet?”

“Oh, no. It’s nice to meet you guys. I’m Neville Longbottom.”

“Hey,” Draco and Ron said in unison. 

“Anyway, I came in here to see if any of you have seen a toad at all? Mine got away from me again.”

All three boys shook their heads, “No, sorry, Nev. I’m sure he’ll turn up though.”

“Yeah. Well, if you see him…” 

“We’ll let you know!”

“Thanks guys. See you later,” Neville said as he closed the compartment door. 

“I don’t know why he’s so bothered,” Ron said, “If I’d brought a toad I’d lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can’t talk.”

Ron looked down and saw the rat still snoozing on his lap, “He might be dead and you wouldn’t know the difference. I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn’t work. I’ll show you guys, look…”

Ron quickly rummaged around in his trunk and pulled out a very battered-looking wand. It was chipped in places and something white was glinting at the end. 

“Unicorn hair’s nearly poking out. Anyway—”

He had just raised his wand when the compartment door slid open again, revealing a familiar, bushy haired girl wearing Hogwarts school robes. 

“Has anyone seen a—” Hermione began and cut off as she caught sight of the three boys in the room. comprehension dawned on her as she took in their faces and a wide smile spread across her face, “Harry! Draco! Ron! What—what are you doing here?” She gushed excitedly.

“Hermione!” all three boys shouted before standing up and rushing her, engulfing her in a three person hug.

“What are we doing here? What are you doing here?! You’re a muggle aren’t you?” Harry asked.

“Well, that’s what my mom and I always thought! No one in my family is magical and it was such a surprise when I received my letter from Professor McGonagall. She came and explained Hogwarts to my parents and I was ever so pleased, of course, to be accepted here. I mean, it’s the very best school of witchcraft there is! Did you guys learn about Hogwarts when you got your letters too?”

Harry shook his head, “No. we’re all from magical families. We had to hide magic from you when we would visit.”

“Yeah,” Draco agreed, “Harry even had to send you my letters and packages because my family can’t get mail the muggle way but he can. That’s why it would take so long for me to reply to you.”

Hermione frowned, “I wish I had known. You three could have explained how I was able to do weird stuff as a child. But no matter! I’m so excited to be able to go to Hogwarts. I’ve already learned all our course books by heart, of course. I just hope it’s enough.”

“Come off it, Hermione,” Ron said, “You’re the smartest person we know. you’ll have no problems fitting in.”

Hermione blushed, “Thanks Ron. That means a lot.”

“Do you want to join us, Hermione? We should be at school soon but we can catch up,” Draco asked, indicating the empty space across from him, next to Ron.

“Well, I should help Neville find his toad…”

“Come off it. Trever will show up on his own,” Harry said.

Hermione bit her lip and looked back behind her before stepping inside the compartment, closing the door, and taking a seat, “I really missed you guys. It was hard finding new friends after I moved.”

“We’ve missed you, too,” Draco said.

Soon the four of them were engrossed in conversation, catching each other up from the events over the last few years since Hermione has been gone. They talked for so long that the boys had to rush putting on their robes while Hermione went to find her trunk again. They agreed to find one another when the train stopped so they could head to the castle together. Nothing would separate them again.


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three: The Sorting

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Sorting

“Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here!” Harry heard a familiar voice calling out as he stepped off the train and onto the platform. He turned and caught sight of an overly large, hairy man, “Alright there, Harry?” Hagrid called out in a booming voice as he beamed at him over the sea of heads. 

“C’mon, follow me—any more firs’ years? Mind yer step, now! Firs’ years follow me!”

“Hagrid! How are you?” Harry asked as he approached Hagrid; Draco, Ron, and Hermione trailing behind him, the latter two in awe of Hagrid’s largeness. 

“Good, good. Head on over there now, you four. I’ll be there in a minute.”

The four made their way, slipping and stumbling, down a steep narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Harry thought there must be thick trees there. 

“That must be forbidden forest,” Draco whispered, “We’re not supposed to go near there.”

“Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,” Hagrid called over his shoulder, “Jus’ round this bend here.”

There was a loud, “Oooooh!” as students received their first glimpse of the enormous castle that was Hogwarts. 

As Harry and his friends rounded the narrow path, it opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. 

“No more’n four to a boat!” Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry, Ron, Draco, and Hermione all scrambled into a boat together, not wanting to be separated on this journey. 

“Everyone in?” shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself, “Right then—Forward!” 

Harry and company sat in their boat admiring the view as the floated closer and closer to Hogwarts. They all ducked as they reached a cliff, floating under a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliffside. Once they reached the underground harbor, they quickly disembarked their boat and stud together as they walked through a passageway and up a set of stone steps before crowding in front of a large, oak door. 

Hagrid quickly knocked on that oak door and, moments later, a tall, stern looking woman in emerald-green robes swung the door open and stepped onto the landing.

“Nana!” Harry shouted without thinking and began moving toward her before he caught sight of her face. Realizing what he’d done, Harry took an embarrassing step back into the crowd but he couldn’t help but think he saw a small smile grace the professor’s lips. 

Hagrid beamed at Harry before saying, “The firs’ years, Professor McGonagall.”

“Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here.”

McGonagall flung the large oak doors open wide, revealing the entrance hall of Hogwarts. It was so big that Harry thought you might have been able to fit all of Potter Manner into the room. it had beautiful marble slabs for the floor; large, flaming torches on the walls to light the room; and a magnificent marble staircase that led to the upper floors. In the center of the room was the Hogwarts crest which appeared to be made out of colored tiles or gemstones with golden inlay. Harry looked at the house crests, wondering silently which house each of his friends would end up being in. He carefully snuck a glance at Draco, who was also looking at the crest, his grey eyes downcast. 

They group followed McGonagall across the hall and into a side chamber where they stood shoulder to shoulder, peering about nervously. 

“Welcome to Hogwarts,” she said, “The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses.”

They listened as McGonagall explained to them all why the sorting is important and what each of the four houses represented. Draco was only half listening as he was absorbed in his own thoughts about the sorting ceremony they were about to undergo. Draco only snapped back to reality as McGonagall was taking her leave and exited the room. he swallowed and turned to his friends who were already anxiously speculating which houses they would be in. 

“I don’t have to wonder,” Ron said with a frown, “My whole family’s in Gryffindor. Doubt I’ll be any different.”

“Well, I for one think Gryffindor would be a fine house to be in. Of course I think I’ll be in Ravenclaw. Only those who are intelligent enough end up in there,” Hermione prattled on. 

“I wouldn’t say that,” Draco interrupted, “Not all Ravenclaws are smart, you know. They just value the ability to learn and be creative. No offense, Hermione, you’re smart but you’re not very creative. I bet you’re in Gryffindor. You’re way too courageous not to be. I’ll probably end up in Slytherin though. Just like everyone else in my family,” Draco looked at the ground. 

“So what?” Harry asked, “As if we care what house you end up in. Why would that change anything and what’s so bad with Slytherin?”

“Well, not a single witch or wizard who went bad wasn’t in Slytherin,” Ron piped up.

Harry scowled, “The man who sold my parents out to Voldemort was a Gryffindor. I think that shreds that idea, doesn’t it?”

Ron looked away from Harry, his face turning scarlet, “Sorry, I forgot.”

Hermione rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, probably to say something about Ron’s tact—or lack there of—when there was a rush of noise and cold air above them as about twenty ghosts filled the hall. They seemed to be arguing amongst each other. A fat little monk was saying, “Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance—”

“My dear Friar, haven’t we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he’s not really even a ghost—I say, what are you all doing here?”

A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first years occupying the side hall they had just flown into. When nobody answered him, the Fat Friar stated, “New students! About to be sorted, I suppose? Hope to see you in Hufflepuff! My old house, you know.”

“Move along now, the sorting ceremony’s about to start,” McGonagall said as she stepped back into the side chamber. She watched as the ghosts exited the room one by one, leaving only her and the first years, “Please form a line and follow me.”

Feeling as though his legs had turned to lead, Draco got into line between Harry and Hermione as they walked out of the chamber and back across the hall again before going through another set of oak double doors which led to the Great Hall. 

All of the first years were in awe upon entering the dining hall as the saw thousands of candles floating in the air lighting up the room. there were four long tables spanning the impressive length of the room filled with golden plates, goblets, and bowls for the feast. Draco paled as he walked in the line as hundreds of eyes were boring down on him. He gulped and, instead of looking around the room, he looked up at the ceiling and was shocked to see the glittering night sky above them instead of a roof. 

Seeing him looking up, Hermione whispered to him, “It’s bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts: A History.”

“Right,” Draco replied in a quiet voice. Maybe he should have skimmed through that book. He bet money there would be a copy to peruse in the library. He would have to go check it out in the morning if he had time. 

Draco watched, as if in slow motion, McGonagall place a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she placed a pointed wizard’s hat that sported several patches and frays. Then the hat twitched, a rp near the brim opened wide like a mouth, and it began to sing:

Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find

A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you

Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve and chivalry

Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffs are true

And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

If you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folk use any means

To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

You're in safe hands (though I have none)

For I'm a Thinking Cap!

When the hat had finished its song the whole hall burst into applause. It then bowed towards each table before becoming ridged and still again.

Professor McGonagall stepped forward toward the chair holding a long roll of parchment, “When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbott, Hannah!”

As Hannah Abbott made her way up to the hat, stumbling, Draco’s knees went weak. What if he wasn’t in Slytherin? What would his father do? What if he was in Slytherin? What did that say about him? And what would happen to his friendships if he were in the opposing house to what would likely be theirs?

He watched as Hannah Abbott sat on the stool, the hat slipping down over her eyes. There was a momentary pause before the hat shouted, “Hufflepuff!” 

A table to the right of the line cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down with them. He gulped as “Bones, Susan!” was called next. 

“Hufflepuff!” the hat said again and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah. 

“Boot, Terry!”

“Ravenclaw!”

He listened as more students were sorted. Brocklehurst, Mandy want to the Ravenclaw table while Brown, Lavender became the first Gryffindor. Bulstrode, Millicent became the first Slytherin. Draco looked toward the table cheering for Millicent and frowned. He thought they looked like an unpleasant lot but he recognized a few of the older students sitting there from dinner parties with his parents. 

Draco listened as a few more students were sorted. Finch-Fletchley, Justin was sent to Hufflepuff while Finnigan, Seamus was next to go to Gryffindor. Then, Hermione was called.

Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly on her head. There was only a split seconds pause before the hat shouted, “Gryffindor!” and she made her way to the table, beaming, while Harry, Ron, and Draco clapped for her, excited that she was sorted. 

Next, Neville was sorted into Gryffindor while MacDougal, Morag was sent to Ravenclaw. 

As Morag made his way to his table, Draco gulped, knowing he would be next. 

“Malfoy, Draco!”

He let out a deep breath and wiped his hands on his pants, as he clumsily made his way up to the stool. He could feel sweat pouring down his face as he sat on the stool and the hat slipped over his eyes. 

“Hmm. What do we have here? A Malfoy? You certainly have what it takes to be in Slytherin. Lots of ambition, a drive to prove yourself, to do whatever it takes to help your friends.”

Draco thought of his friends, how they would be in Gryffindor without him; what it would be like to be in Slytherin, the opposite house from them—their rival. He frowned, sadness welling inside of him.

“I see, I see,” the hat spoke into his mind, “There is conflict here. You would do well in Slytherin, it would help you on your way to greatness. But there’s intelligence here; a thirst for knowledge and creativity. Ravenclaw would help you cultivate and quench that thirst. But which suits you better? Difficult. You are very difficult young Malfoy.”

The memory of his father discussing which house he would be in before he left for Hogwarts swam to the front of his mind, “It is my expectation that with this new start you cut ties with any and all poor relationships and should I receive word that such relationships have continued, well, there will be a problem.”

Draco gulped, “Yes, Father, I understand.” 

Lucius sat back in his chair, a sly smile on his face, “I am pleased, Draco. And when you’re sorted into Slytherin your mother and I shall make sure you’re rewarded appropriately.”

Draco frowned, “Father?”

“Yes, Draco?”

“What—what if I’m not sorted into Slytherin? I mean, I don’t have control over that decision,” Draco asked carefully.

Lucius frowned, his eyes flashing black, “You will be sorted into Slytherin, Draco. Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear.”

“Ah, yes. Will you be able to withstand the familial pressure if you aren’t in Slytherin? But what is best for you—where will you thrive? Better be…”

“Ravenclaw!” the hat shouted to the hall. 

Draco’s eyes widened in shock, his entire body went ridged as he sat on the spindle legged chair and the hat was pulled from his head. He could hear the murmurs coming from the Slytherin table as several of the students sat with their heads together, looking back at him on the stool. 

He quickly looked at Harry who was staring at him wide eyed and open mouthed, a large grin forming on his face as he realized what was happening.

“Mr. Malfoy, please take your seat with the rest of your house, if you would,” McGonagall said as she indicated the Ravenclaw table which was applauding him and beckoning him to take his seat amongst them. 

“But, Professor, there’s been a mistake, i—” 

“There are no mistakes, Mr. Malfoy. Please, go take your seat.”

Draco nodded solemnly and stood up on shaky legs; he wondered if they would support his legs long enough to make it to his table. As if in a daze that he can’t quite remember, Draco managed to make his way to the table and found himself sitting next to the boy named Terry Boot who slapped a hand on his shoulder and congratulated him on being sorted into Ravenclaw. 

Draco mumbled a quick thanks before looking back up at the ceremony, his mind otherwise occupied. He barely listened as Nott and Parkinson were sorted into Slytherin, Patil to Gryffindor, Patil to Ravenclaw—she took a seat next to him and smiled—before his ears perked up at Harry’s name.

“Potter, Harry.”

As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.

“Potter, did she say?”

“The Harry Potter?”

Harry glanced up at the head table at his Uncle who was sitting on the end to his left. Remus was beaming at Harry, giving him a small thumbs up and mouthing, “It’ll be ok!” as he sat down. 

The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.

“Hmm,” said a soft voice in his ear, “Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There’s talent, oh my goodness, yes—and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that’s interesting…so where shall I put you?”

Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, With my friends. 

“Hmm. Why not Slytherin though?” said the small voice, “You could be great, you know, it’s all here in your head, and Slytherin would help you on your way to greatness, no doubt about that.”

With my friends—Gryffindor or Ravenclaw.

“No? Well, if you’re sure—better be Gryffindor!” 

Harry heard the hat shout the last word to the whole hall. He took off the hat and walked shakily toward the Gryffindor table, but not before chancing a look back at Remus who had stood up to clap for Harry, his face alight with excitement. He made a mental note to go check in with Remus tomorrow. 

Harry hardly noticed that he was getting the loudest cheer yet. Percy had actually stood up and shook his hand vigorously, while Fred and George yelled, “We got Potter! We got Potter!” Harry sat down opposite to the ghost he had seen earlier. The ghost patted his arm, giving Harry the sudden, horrible feeling he’d just plunged into a bucket of ice-cold water. 

Harry watched as the remaining students were sorted into their houses. He clapped loudly when Ron was sorted into Gryffindor with him and Hermione.

“Alright, mate! The three of us made it into Gryffindor! And Draco, a Ravenclaw—never thought I’d see the day,” Ron said as he let out a whistle, “Blimey. How do you think he’s feeling right now? His dad might kill him.”

Harry paled. He’d been so concerned with where he was going to end up, he had completely forgotten about Draco’s issues with his dad. What was going to happen now that he’d been sorted into Ravenclaw? Harry looked down at the empty plate in front of him as the last few students were finally sorted. It wasn’t long before McGonagall took the stool away and Dumbledore got to his feet, beaming, and welcomed them. 

“Welcome! Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here hey are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! 

Thank you! Tuck in.”

Confused, Harry looked back at the plates in front of him, wondering how the food would get out to them. His mouth fell open when he realized that they were now filled with every kind of food he could think of. 

Everyone ate, drank, and talked during dinner. Ron had somehow managed to eat what seemed like an entire chicken and several potatoes by the time pudding was presented to them. It never ceased to amaze Harry just how much food Ron was capable of eating. While he wasn’t talking much during dinner, he had been listening to Hermione cheerfully tell anyone who would listen all the spells she had been learning before they had arrived. She was currently talking to Percy who seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. They had always gotten along if Harry’s memory served him.

As Harry had begun to feel warm and sleepy, he looked back up at the head table, but this time he wanted to see the other professors. He noticed that Hagrid was drinking deeply from his goblet while Nana was deeply engrossed in a conversation with Professor Dumbledore. Professor Quirrell, in his absurd turban, was talking to a teacher with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin. 

It happened very suddenly. The hook-nosed teacher looked past Quirrel’s turban straight into Harry’s eyes—a sharp, hot pain shot across the scar on his forehead as their eyes met. 

“Ouch!” Harry clapped a hand to his head. 

“What is it?” asked Percy.

Ron and Hermione looked at him, concern on their faces.

“N—nothing.” 

The pain had gone as quickly as it had come. Harder to shake off was the feeling he had gotten from the teacher’s look—like he didn’t like Harry at all. He brushed it off, though. He wouldn’t believe a teacher would hate him before he even spoke to them. 

“Who’s that teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?”

“Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he’s looking so nervous, that’s Professor Snape. He teaches potions—”

“Snape you said?” Harry asked, his eyes wide as he tried to remember why that name sounded so familiar.

“Yes. Professor Severus Snape. He’s the head of Slytherin house.”

“Snape…Snape…” Harry mumbled to himself. He knew he had heard that name before. But why? And when? 

Harry listened with the rest of the students as Dumbledore gave his usual end of feast speech outlining the major rules of Hogwarts before sending the students off to their dormitories. 

As they stood up, Ron, Harry, and Hermione attempted to make their way toward Draco to make sure he was ok but they were blocked by Percy who began herding them toward the rest of the Gryffindor first years out the door and up the staircase. As they walked, the three of them agreed they would track Draco down at breakfast the next morning since tonight was going to be impossible. 

As they walked, Harry was wondering how much longer they were going to be when the group came to a sudden halt. He noticed a bundle of walking sticks in front of them and watched as Percy stepped forward, mumbling about something called a Peeves. 

“Peeves, show yourself!” Percy demanded.

A loud, rude sound, like the air being let out of a balloon, answered. 

“Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?”

There was a pop, and a little man with wicked, dark eyes and a wide mouth appeared, floating cross-legged in the air, clutching the walking sticks. He swooped at them and they all ducked. 

“Go away Peeves! Or the Baron will hear about this!”

Peeves stuck out his tongue and vanished.

“You’ll want to avoid Peeves if you can,” Percy said as they began to walk again. 

It wasn’t long before they reached the Gryffindor portrait hole, which was guarded by a woman called the fat lady. Once Percy said the password, they all clambered into the common room and were directed to their dormitories. The boys and girls separated and made their way up to their beds. 

Upon entering their room, the boys realized that their stuff had already been placed at the foot of a bed, their robes laid out for the next day with new badges affixed to them indicating they were in Gryffindor. 

Harry and Ron bid each other good night and got into bed, closing their hangings. Harry waited for what seemed like an hour before the other boys fell asleep in their beds and he was the last one awake before he pulled out the mirror in his pocket.

“Dad!” he whispered at the mirror, unsure of whether it would work or if his dad was even still awake, “Dad!”

Suddenly, James’ face appeared in the mirror, sleepy eyed and groggy as he yawned and asked, “Harry, it’s late. I didn’t expect you to call till morning. Did something happen?”

“You could say that,” Harry said slowly before entering into the stories of how Draco was sorted into Ravenclaw and about how his scar had hurt when he looked at the Professor named Snape, “And I can’t remember why his name sounds familiar but something told me you would know. Why would my scar hurt like that? It’s never happened before.”

James frowned and then sighed as his eyes flashed in anger, “I’m going to just take a second before answering those questions and discuss Draco because I need a minute to calm down. First off, I’m glad that Draco was strong enough to ignore his father’s influence and allow the hat to sort him into the house that best suited him. He’s going to have a rough road ahead of him, Harry, and he’s going to need you three there for him now more than ever. He might even get disowned from his family; I don’t know. I’m not sure how seriously Lucius Malfoy takes the Slytherin legacy and whether Narcissa will stand up for Draco or not. Make sure he knows he always has a room with us if he needs it, ok? Actually, I’ll write him a letter. It might be better if he knows I’m here for him.

“As for Professor Snape,” James sneered, “That would be your mother’s old friend from school I told you about. The one who I didn’t get along with. Snivellus.”

Then it clicked in Harry’s mind why he knew that name and he remembered the conversation he had had with his father before leaving for school, “Wait, you didn’t know he was a professor here?” 

James shook his head, “No. Moony probably felt it best not to tell me. I don’t know why. But, just be careful around him. He used to be a death eater. Dumbledore vouched for him after Voldemort’s fall and no one knows why—but he has Dumbledore’s trust. That doesn’t mean he’s going to treat you fairly but I hope he hasn’t held onto his childhood grudge for this long. I guess we’ll find out. Let me know if he gives you any trouble, ok?”

“Ok. But what about my scar?”

“That I don’t know. I’m going to look into it an discuss it with Dumbledore. Call me immediately if it happens again, ok? We’re going to take this issue seriously and find the reason it’s happening. It can’t be a good sign.

“You haven’t told me which house you were sorted into, though. Care to share?”

“Oh, right,” Harry had forgotten all about his sorting, “Gryffindor with Ron and Hermione.”

“Hermione? Like, Hermione Granger? I think I missed something here!” James exclaimed in confusion and surprise.

“Yeah! Apparently she’s a muggle born and we never knew! Isn’t that awesome? But how did none of us notice her using magic when we were kids?”

“Now that you mention it, I’m not sure. She may have been subtle about it. If she’s anything like Lily she may have even had a level of control over her magic and was able to control when she used it and displayed it. Hermione was never temperamental as a child so she might not have been prone to the emotional and magical outbursts you were.”

“Yeah, but I feel like we should have noticed it.”

James shrugged, “Sometimes you just don’t. Anyway, get some sleep. You’ll have lessons in the morning. Call if your scar hurts again, ok?”

“I will. Thanks dad.”

“Night, Harry.”

“Night.”

Harry put the mirror on his bed side table before rolling over for the night. It didn’t take long before he drifted off into a dreamless sleep. 

Draco lay awake in his dormitory bed, his mind racing as he lay under the dark blue ceiling. How was his father going to react to his sorting? Would he be pulled from school? Or maybe banished from his home? Draco tossed and turned before finally getting up and out of bed. 

He wandered into the bathroom where he splashed some water on his face and looked at himself in the mirror before walking back out again, restless. 

Not wanting to wake his dormmates up because he was pacing around, he decided to go down to the common room for a while. Draco quickly grabbed a book from his trunk at random and made his way downstairs. 

The fire in the fireplace had burnt down to embers as the students had gone to bed. He looked around and took up a spot on the couch by the fire where he put a pillow behind his head and lay down, holding his book above him. But he couldn’t concentrate. He realized he had been reading the same paragraph several times but hadn’t taken any of it in. He sighed as he rolled on his side and looked into the dying fire, his thoughts on the sorting ceremony. Why hadn’t he just let the hat put him in Slytherin? It would have been much easier even if it meant being ostracized from his friends. 

Draco spent the next hour switching between laying on the couch and pacing the room while he replayed the conversation with his father and his sorting in his mind over and over, wondering what was going to happen next. It wasn’t until nearly three in the morning before he finally passed out on the couch in the common room, his arm flung off of the cushions and onto the floor.


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four: A Blue Dragon

Chapter Thirty-Four: A Blue Dragon

The next morning Draco somehow found himself sitting across from Dumbledore and Professor Flitwick in Dumbledore’s office. Lucius Malfoy sat next to him, his anger radiating off of his person as his blue eyes burned at the sight of Dumbledore and Flitwick. Draco looked away from his father and stared down at his feet, hoping beyond hope that this would end quickly. He hadn’t seen his father this angry since the time he found out that Draco had made friends with the Weasley children. 

From the corner of his eye, he could see Lucius’ knuckles turning white as he gripped the top of his cane, the snakes head peeking out from between his fingers. Draco knew from unpleasant experience that his father not only kept his wand hidden inside of that cane, but that his grip indicated his patients was running thin. But what could his father do to him or anyone else in this office? He would have to keep his composure during this meeting, Draco was sure of it. 

“Albus—” Lucius began before being interrupted. 

“Ah, I see we are using first names today, are we, Lucius?”

Lucius frowned indignantly, “I suppose we are, Headmaster. As I was beginning to say. You are aware of why my presence was required today, I assume? Or are you not as up to date with the goings on within your school as you so claim?”

“I believe I am acutely aware of the goings on within the walls of Hogwarts and the Ministry, Lucius. However, I’m not sure of the issue for which you called this meeting, if that’s what you’re suggesting. I am afraid I never quite mastered the art of Legilimency quite like our Potions Master has. Therefore, I find that I am quite incapable of reading the minds of those around me. If you could, I would appreciate if you could enlighten the present company as to this…unexpected visit.”

Lucius forced a small smile at Dumbledore’s words; his teeth bared almost as if he were snarling as he replied, “Well, Headmaster, I believe this issue at hand is quite clear. My son, Draco, was not sorted into the proper house. As you are well aware, the Malfoy and Black families have long since been sorted exclusively in Slytherin house—save a few unsavory individuals who required pruning from the family tree. However, there seems to have been a mistake involving my son’s sorting. It came to my attention late last night that Draco was erroneously placed into Ravenclaw house, not Slytherin, and I demand this issue be rectified immediately.”

Dumbledore smiled calmly at Lucius as he looked at him over the tips of his fingers, “I assure you, Lucius, there is nothing wrong or incorrect about the young Mr. Malfoy having been sorted into Ravenclaw. The sorting hat placed him in the house that best suits him, where he will flourish and grow within the best. It seems our young Mr. Malfoy has a thirst for knowledge that simply could not be satisfied by placing him in Slytherin house.”

“Be that as it may,” Lucius stated through gritted teeth, “Our family history, our legacy, dictates that Draco be in Slytherin house, with his own kind, and I demand he be moved immediately or I will be forced to convene the school governors to discuss this issue further.”

“Now, see here, Mr. Malfoy, it’s not appropriate to use threats against the headmaster!” Flitwick stated, shock written on his face, “I assure you that Ravenclaw house is just as noble, creates just as intelligent and successful witches and wizards as Slytherin house.”

“Thank you, Filius. Lucius, I am afraid there is nothing that can be done. The magics that sort the students is both old and strong—it cannot be undone no matter how much of a fight is put up about the situation. I would hope that you would be proud to have such an intelligent young boy as your son.”

“I have no issues with Ravenclaw house,” Lucius spat, “But rather, those that get sorted into the house. I do not wish Draco to be forced to associate with those undesirable people. Muggle born students are rarely sorted into Slytherin whereas they run rampant within the other three houses. Draco needs to be surrounded by his peers—the other pure blood families of old. I will not stand to have the Malfoy name tarnished in such a way!”

Draco watched fearfully as Dumbledore pushed his chair back and stood up, towering over Lucius as he glared down, his blue eyes alight with righteous fire, “Lucius, I will not tolerate such antiquated beliefs within the walls of Hogwarts. I have long fought for the rights of muggle born students within these hallowed halls. Mr. Malfoy will not be removed from Ravenclaw house for the sole and prejudiced reasoning of blood status and you have no right to come to my office and make these demands. Now, if you don’t have any other demands to make of me, I believe it is time for Mr. Malfoy to head to breakfast so he can get his timetables for the year. It wouldn’t due to have him miss his first meal of the day on his first day of classes.”

Lucius stood up, his black cloak billowing behind him as he turned to Draco, his eyes cold and hard, “Draco, we will speak of this issue at a later date. Believe me when I state that this will not be the last of this issue. I am extremely disappointed in this display of defiance from you and I expect your attitude to change before the holidays. Go!” 

Draco stood up quickly, his eyes downcast, “Yes, Father. I’m sorry, Father.” Draco turned and nodded as each man in turn, “Professor Dumbledore. Professor Flitwick. Father,” And he quickly turned on his heel and left the office to make his way down to breakfast. If he was lucky, maybe he could grab a quick bite to eat before classes began. 

~ID~

The whispers followed Harry, Ron, and Hermione from the moment they left Gryffindor Tower. People all over were doing what they could to get a glimpse of Harry throughout the corridors and staircases; some people even doubled back to pass him again, staring at him. 

Wanting to get away from the stares, the three tried to find their way to the great hall for breakfast quickly. The soon realized that the castle was more of a maze than they had anticipated. They got lost almost immediately and it was lucky of them that Hermione had already memorized Hogwarts: A History and was able to use that information to find their way again. In all, it only took them 20 minutes to get down to breakfast. 

As they walked into the hall, they quickly searched the Ravenclaw table for familiar blonde hair, and were ultimately disappointed when they failed to find Draco amongst the students in his house. The trio quickly found seats at their table and began loading up their plates with breakfast for the day. 

They were chatting about what their classes would be like as Hermione spread jam on her toast, when a large flock of owls poured into the hall carrying letters and packages. Harry and Hermione didn’t even bother to look to see if any owls were coming their way; neither anticipated receiving mail anytime soon. Harry was pleasantly shocked and confused when Hedwig landed in front of him, almost knocking over Ron’s pumpkin juice, and held her leg out, a small scroll of parchment attached to her. 

“What’cha got, Hedwig?” Harry asked as he untied the letter from her leg, “Here,” he placed some bits of bacon on the table for Hedwig which she ate happily. 

Harry quickly unfurled the parchment and read through the untidy handwriting on the page.

“Who’s it from?” Ron asked, his mouth full of eggs. 

“Hagrid,” Harry said, smiling, “He’s invited the four of us to tea this Saturday. Want to go?”

Ron and Hermione made comments of agreement and Harry quickly wrote his response on the other side of the parchment and tied it back to Hedwig’s leg, “Here you go, girl. Can you fly this to Hagrid? I’ll be up to visit you in the next few days with a letter for dad. Can you take it to him when I come?”

Hedwig gave Harry a hoot and nipped his finger before flying off, her wing hitting the bit of toast Hermione was eating, knocking it to the ground. She sighed and grabbed more toast and started spreading jam on it again. 

“I wonder where Draco is,” Hermione mentioned casually as she finished spreading jam, “He looked so pale last night. Do you think he was nervous about the sorting? I was so pleased to see him get sorted into Ravenclaw—he’s so smart, you know. He’s going to love being in that house and solving a riddle every day to get to the common room.”

“You have to solve a riddle to get into the Ravenclaw common room?” Ron asked with a frown, “Blimey, I’d never be able to get to bed.”

“You’d just have to wait for someone to let you in is all,” Harry commented back, “But, you’re right, Hermione. I’m sure he wasn’t too pleased with the hat’s decision. Now he’s going to have to deal with his father.”

Hermione frowned and set her toast aside, “What do you mean? Won’t his dad be pleased he’s in such a prestigious house?”

Harry shook his head, “Nah. His dad’s mad—he’s got some hang up about blood status and family tradition,” Harry quickly went on to explain to Hermione the conversation he, Draco, his father, and Sirius had before the start of term, “His dad’s going to be bloody angry that Draco wasn’t sorted into Slytherin.”

“Speaking of the git,” Ron said as he nodded toward the entrance to the great hall, “Draco just walked in. Draco!” Ron called and waived his arm. 

Draco looked over and caught sight of Ron. They could see him quickly glance around the room before hurriedly making his way over to the Gryffindor table and taking a seat.

“Hi guys. Am I even allowed to sit here? Every one else is eating at their house tables.”

Harry shrugged but Hermione piped up, “I read in Hogwarts: A History that, while it’s not against school rules for students of different houses to sit at other tables, it’s not common practice due to the nature of your relationship and affiliation with your housemates.”

“Hermione I swear you read too much. Who does this much studying before their first day of their first term?” Ron asked as he rolled his eyes at her.

“Honestly, Ron, I don’t know why you didn’t do any research into the place you’ll be living at for seven years! There’s so many secrets here at Hogwarts, legends and history; doesn’t that excite you?”

“Not really. You’re the odd man out, Hermione.”

“Well excuse me for showing an interest in magic and Hogwarts. I haven’t had the privilege of knowing about all of this,” she indicated everything around them, “from the moment I was born like the rest of you.”

“Right,” Harry said, “Anyway, Draco, Hagrid invited us all to tea Saturday. Did you want to come?” 

Draco sighed and slid down in his seat, “Yeah, if I’m still at Hogwarts, anyway.”

“What do you mean, ‘if you’re still at Hogwarts’?” Ron asked as he spooned more potatoes onto his plate.

“Father came to have a meeting with Dumbledore and Flitwick. It was—it was a sight.”

Draco quickly explained the events that occurred in Dumbledore’s office and his father’s reactions. The trio gasped and cried out, outraged, at Lucius’ actions and statements. 

“That’s bloody ridiculous!” Ron exclaimed, “Demanding you be moved because there are muggle borns in Ravenclaw. I mean, really. As if there aren’t any in Slytherin!”

Hermione frowned at Ron, “There aren’t, Ron. Muggle borns aren’t sorted into Slytherin—the house founder made sure of that when the four of them created the Sorting Hat. He believed that Hogwarts should have only been for pure blood children but he was outvoted by the other founders of Hogwarts who insisted that anyone who can do magic be allowed to attend the school. It’s an old, deep rooted prejudice and I can’t believe your father follows that archaic notion.”

Draco sighed, “My who family does. Well, except Sirius. He was disowned years ago by my Great Aunt Walburga.”

Harry snorted, “Yeah. Uncle Sirius likes to say he was ‘properly disowned’. His parents were right prats—as prejudice as they come. They were dead proud of Uncle Sirius’ brother, Regulus, for joining up with Voldemort during his reign. Oh shut it, you three.”

“Yeah, well, I might be disowned at this rate. Honestly, I won’t be surprised if I get a howler telling me not to come home.”

Ron’s eyes darkened, “Well then you’ll come live with me. Honestly, after seven kids what’s one more.”

Draco looked at Ron for a long time, as if he were fully appreciating him for the first time, “Thank you, Ron. That means a lot. I don’t care what my father says about you, you and your family are good people.”

“Yeah,” Ron said, smiling before frowning, “Wait, what does your dad say about my family?”

Just then they were interrupted by McGonagall and Flitwick who had made their way over to them with their times tables. 

“Thanks, nana!” Harry said as he accepted his sheet from Minerva. 

Minerva let out a small smile before whacking him lightly on the head with the roll of parchment she held in her hand, “Potter, we use appropriate titles here at Hogwarts. I don’t appreciate your cheek. Five points from Gryffindor. Now I suggest you start headed to your first classes, you four. Don’t dally now!”

The four of them nodded and quickly reviewed their schedules, checking to see which classes they would all have together. It looked like they would have Astronomy, History of Magic, and Transfiguration together this year while the three Gryffindors would have Herbology, Charms, and Defense against the Dark Arts with the Hufflepuffs and then Potions with the Slytherins while Draco would have the later three classes with the Slytherins and Potions with the Hufflepuffs. 

After comparing their schedules, the small group quickly finished their breakfasts and then headed off to Transfiguration together. 

~ID~

The first week of classes went quickly for Ron, Draco, Hermione, and Harry. Eventually students got used to seeing Harry in the halls and in classes and their excitement dwindled and dissipated by the end of the week. 

Other than having to get used to the fast paced environment, and a small snag in Potions, the week went smoothly for all for children. They were quickly adapting to life at Hogwarts and each were finding a niche that they were good in. Harry, of course, was doing well in DADA while Draco and Hermione were excelling at Charms. Ron was surprisingly good at Astronomy. He had explained early on to the group that he had always been fascinated by the constellations and how they continuously change throughout the year and so Bill had taught him a lot of what was taught in astronomy already. 

Harry was having a blast finally learning how to use magic and finally doing it with a wand. He found it much easier to complete spells properly now that he had a wand and wasn’t being forced to do it wandlessly. He instantly agreed with his uncles and dad that wandless magic was much more difficult than spells normally are. 

Potions had not gone quite according to plan, however, when Snape verbally accosted Harry during their first lesson. James had not been pleased when Harry relayed that class to him. After that, Harry decided it might be best to not relay every detail to his dad so as to avoid any unnecessary visits from James throughout the school year. He imagined that may make his situation worse than it already was. 

Draco was finding that he was enjoying his housemates and the classes more than he thought he would. And, if he was honest with himself, he wasn’t too upset about the fact that he wasn’t going to have to room with Goyle and Crabbe for seven years. They were dreadfully dull and Draco wasn’t sure if they were all there in the head or not. He felt they were rather stupid for two boys his age. 

Ron was keeping up with the course load but, other than astronomy, he wasn’t overly pronounced in any one subject yet. Though, Harry and Draco were beginning to get annoyed at the small bickers that he got into with Hermione over the dumbest stuff. Just the day before those two had gotten into an argument over the proper pronunciation of Lumos. Ron was insisting that it was pronounced leh-MOUSSE while Hermione continued to correct him and explain that it was LIEU-mós. This spat had caused the two friends to refuse to speak to each other for an entire afternoon until Draco finally drug both of them to Professor Flitwick’s office to settle the debate once and for all. Of course, Hermione was correct, and Ron begrudgingly apologized to her. 

Despite the rocky start, this school year was looking bright and exciting as the group continued to take on more challenging work.


	35. Chapter Thirty-Five: Catching Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Triplethecheese: I'm sorry that you've been going through so much in your life. I know what it's like to be in a place like that and I'm so happy that I helped you in a way I didn't realize I would. Thank you for your words of encouragement. I really only cross-post on this platform--I update regularly and with more Authors Notes at https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13505782/1/Ignoring-Destiny . Here I respond to all reviews, give some information about my life, and give a "beer of the week" spotlight. Please feel free to read on any platform you desire but know that the love is here for you!

Chapter Thirty-Five: Catching Up

Gin,

How have you been? I feel like it’s been ages since we last talked even though it’s only been a week. It’s weird not being able to hang out with you. I mean, Ron’s my best mate, don’t get me wrong, and I enjoy hanging out with Fred and George, but I’ve always had an easier time talking to you than any of them.

I don’t know what to do. I haven’t talked to my dad yet because I know he’s going to be upset with Professor Snape—they already don’t like each other. Snape, he’s—he’s a git. Honestly, Ginny. Calling me famous and saying that I enjoy all the attention that I’m getting from classmates and teachers and whatever. I didn’t ask for that. What gives him the right to treat me like this? And the way he’s treating Neville is even worse. He’s worse than a bully, Gin. Apparently my dad and uncles knew him from school and they aren’t big fans of him. They called him Snivellus. I’m going to have to try hard not to call him that in class now.

And…I told my dad about this but he didn’t act like it was a big deal but it just doesn’t sit right with me. When I saw him for the first time in the great hall, my scar hurt. I’ve never had it hurt before but it was bad. It felt like it was burning or like someone had stuck a knife into it. It hasn’t happened since, and my dad made me swear I would tell him if it did, but it worries me. Do you think you could ask Bill if he’s ever heard of anything like this during his travels? I would mail him myself but I have no idea where he is and you see him once a week or so, right?

How bad has your mom gotten since we all left? Did she decide if she was still going to make you learn to cook this term? She should know by now that you’re so dreadful at cooking that you’re beyond saving. I mean, honestly, Ron can cook better than you can. 

I bet you’re doing a lot of flying lately since everyone is gone. I haven’t been able to fly once since coming to school. First years aren’t allowed brooms and the school brooms are for flying classes and quidditch teams only. We start classes next week I heard. We have class with the Slytherins. 

OH! GINNY. NO ONE TOLD YOU!! Hermione is at Hogwarts with us! oh my god. You know that private boarding school she was accepted to? SHE WAS TALKING ABOUT HOGWARTS! And she’s bloody brilliant at magic, Gin. I mean, she’s picking it up faster than anyone else in our class. She’s even rivaling Draco. I swear those two are going to have a show down at the end of term for top marks. I think she’s going overboard though, I’m telling you. She’s read through every single one of our textbooks on top of a few other history books that she got for “Background reading”. I think she’s memorized half of them, anyway. 

Right and Draco! Did you hear the news? The hat sorted him into Ravenclaw! Apparently, Draco’s dad came here to school to try to force Dumbledore to move Draco to Slytherin house and Dumbledore refused. I didn’t realize how bigoted Lord Malfoy was. Promise me you’ll stay away from that creep. I don’t trust him and I’m not sure why. 

Write back soon, Ginny. I miss you. 

Love,

Harry

Harry quickly read back over the letter he had written to Ginny. Satisfied, he decided to make a trip up to the owlery to visit Hedwig and send his letter. 

As he made his way up to the owlery he came across Hermione who was on her way down. 

“Hi Harry! What are you up to? I’m on my way to the library. We have so much homework you know. I don’t want to get behind.”

“Hey Hermione. It’s Saturday, what are you doing homework on a Saturday? Isn’t that what Sunday is for?”

“Harry, we’ll get behind if we keep putting homework off! I don’t want to get poor marks.”

Harry shrugged, “Whatever suits you. I’m mailing a letter to Ginny. I imagine she’s lonely at home with just Mrs. Weasley all day. I can’t imagine how quite the Burrow is right now.”

Hermione’s eyes widened, “I didn’t even think about how lonely Ginny must feel right now! I’m such a horrible friend.”

“You’re not a horrible friend! Just maybe send her a letter now and then. Bill said he was going to visit her a lot this year since everyone is out of the house now. I just bet Mrs. Weasley is driving her up the wall.”

“I’ll write to her right away. I can’t believe I waited this long. I was just sending a letter to my parents and I don’t know why I didn’t think of sending her one, too.”

“What did you tell your parents? How is Mrs. Granger? I haven’t seen her in years.”

“Mum’s doing well. Her and dad have really established their practice. They do a lot of lectures at different universities. They’re very proud of me for getting into Hogwarts, you know. I was writing them to tell them how my first week was and to let them know what house I’m in. They’re going to be so surprised when they find out that you, Ron, and Draco go to school with me! I’m still not sure how you hid magic from us so well with the number of times we visited your house.”

“It definitely wasn’t easy. We did the magic stuff when you weren’t around and sometimes we had parties without you because we were playing quidditch for them. Like, part of my birthday present was tickets to the quidditch world cup and we couldn’t invite you to that. You’ll have to let me know how they react. I bet it’s hilarious!” 

“They’ll definitely be surprised. I’ll let you read the letter when it arrives! But I’m going to head to the library now. See you later, Harry! Oh, and if you see Draco, can you send him my way? I spoke to Professor McGonagall about our debate. Thanks, Harry!”

“See you,” Harry said as he watched her hair whip around the corner. He shook his head as he made his way up the owlery stairs and mailed off his letter.

~ID~

James looked around the kitchen, his brow furrowed as he heard a ringing noise coming from the room. He ran his hand through his hair as he tied to recall what they may have in the kitchen that would cause the ringing noise. As he thought about it, he suddenly remembered the muggle telephone they had bought years ago but never use. 

His eyes wide, James quickly made his way over to the counter against the back wall and grabbed the phone and held it to his ear. He frowned when all he heard was a dial tone. Confused, he put the phone back on the hook and turned to walk away.

He had made it about ten steps before he heard the phone ring again. As they hadn’t had anyone calling them in years, James was thoroughly surprised to hear it going again. He turned on his heel and ran back to the phone, picking it up on the fourth ring. 

“Potter residence,” James spoke into the receiver.

“James Potter!” Roared a voice on the other end of the line, “Why in the world did you keep Hogwarts a secret from me? You must have known that Hermione had these—these powers!”

James pulled the receiver away from his ear as he continued to hear the yelling and ranting on the other end of the line. He sat there, allowing her to continue yelling, for several minutes before the woman finally calmed down enough for him to get a word in.

“Ma’am, I’m sorry, but you were yelling so loudly I couldn’t quite understand what the issue is and I think you may have the wrong number—”

“You’re James Potter, right? Or is this Remus or Sirius?”

“This is James. Who are you?”

“It’s Jean Granger! And I’m yelling at you for not telling us that Hermione was a witch and you let us find out from a letter from our daughter that your son and his friends are all wizards and they now go to school together! Greg and I would have appreciated some sort of warning about all of this—this stuff!”

“That Hermione’s a—Jean, I didn’t know she was a witch!” James roared with laughter, “I didn’t find out until the day they started school when Harry told me they found her on the train to school!” 

“You didn’t—how could you not know? It seemed like all you—people just kind of—knew each other. Don’t you? Isn’t there some way you knew?”

James laughed again and replied, “No. only Hogwarts knows that. There’s a magical book at the school that records when any person with magic is born within the boundaries of Europe. Then, every year McGonagall and Dumbledore use the book to send letters to the children. Honestly, Jean, if we had noticed Hermione using magic, we would have told you immediately. It must have been a bloody shock for you when you found out.”

James could hear Jean humph on the other end of the phone as she stopped and thought for a moment, weighing her options before she continued, “Well, it must have been obvious, though. She was always doing odd things and this explains how she was able to read so much and get her books down from the top shelf. And hiding things! She used to make things just disappear and we thought she was hiding them. I’ll never forgive myself for punishing her for making her broccoli go away—I thought she’d hidden it but I guess she was telling the truth when she said it had disappeared…” Jean trailed off as she spoke mostly to herself about all of the odd things Hermione had done during her childhood.

“To be honest, Jean, it sounds like Hermione may have had some level of control over her magic. Some children are like that. My wife—my late wife, Lily, was like that. And, if that’s the case, unless she explicitly showed one of us we wouldn’t have known until now. Some muggle borns are just exceptionally powerful.”

“And that! That lady who came to talk to us kept using that word, mug-gal, but I have no idea what it means! It sounds like an insult if I’m honest.”

“Oh, I guess you wouldn’t know what a muggle is, would you. It’s someone who doesn’t have magic and comes from a non-magical family. So, you’re a muggle. And because Hermione comes from a family of muggles, she’s a muggle born. We, wizards I mean, don’t really know why sometimes muggle borns are born. Some people speculate that, centuries ago, some magical blood was in the family line and then a squib was born, causing the magic to die out. Then, centuries later, that magical energy builds until it’s passed on to one person. But that’s pure speculation.”

In the moment of silence that followed James’ explanation, he could almost hear Jean frowning and thinking. He gave her several moments before continuing, “Did you have any other questions? Or anything you want explained to you? It’s a lot to take in, I know.”

“Well, yeah, a lot of questions. Everything is so different for wizards. I mean, you even use quills and ink still—it’s so archaic and time consuming.”

James frowned, “Well, what else would we use?”

“Pencils? Pens? Markers? Literally anything that doesn’t require you to dip something in ink every other letter? I’ve sent Hermione some pens to Hogwarts. Hopefully she decides to use them. You know, she couldn’t even take her alarm clock with her! I understand not wanting to use new technology but, an alarm clock? Really?”

“I mean, in Hogwarts’ defense, the magic that surrounds the school and is used in it causes anything run on electricity to short out and malfunction. Some wizarding children are able to charm wirelesses and bring those but they’re rare.”

“A wireless? You mean you don’t use Walkman’s?”

“What’s a Walkman?”

“It’s a—honestly, you’ve never heard of them? They’re so popular right now. It’s a small, portable, cassette player. You use headphones to listen to your music or books.”

“Muggles invented a way to listen to books? They never fail to amaze me. I bet Arthur Weasley would love to get his hands on one of those.”

“I mean, I can mail him one. They’re nothing too interesting.”

“No, no, you’ve never met Arthur. He has this odd fascination with muggles. He has this huge collection of muggle batteries and plugs and stuff. Real odd I tell you. He would have a field day with one of those Walkman’s.”

“Why would anyone have a collection of batteries?”

“No clue,” James said as he laughed.

The two parents continued to talk on the phone for the next few hours while James explained the ins and outs of the wizarding world to Jean who was absolutely fascinated by everything he had to say. He filled her in on how Hogwarts works, their grading system and how each year progresses as well as the multiple subjects that are taught. By the end of the conversation, Jean was feeling much more comfortable with allowing Hermione to continue learning at Hogwarts.

~ID~

Ginny sprinted to the window in the kitchen the moment she heard the sharp tap on the glass. She beamed as she soon realized who’s owl was paying the burrow a visit with a letter and quickly opened the window so Hedwig could hop inside, hooting affectionately. 

Ginny ogled the snowy owl’s beauty and lightly stroked the feathers on her head as she cooed to the owl. Hedwig must have thought she was in heaven because she certainly loved having her feathers stroked and she hooted indignantly when Ginny stopped and went to untie the letter from her leg. 

“Sorry Hedwig, don’t you want me to be able to mail Harry back quickly?” she asked the owl who was now sitting very put out on the sill of the window. Hedwig hooted and shuffled her feet so she was facing back out the window and simply waited for Ginny to get on with reading the letter and writing a reply.

“Oh now, really. You don’t need to be like that. There’s some left-over bacon from breakfast if you want it. It’s on the table; help yourself.”

Hedwig hooted and quickly flew to the table where she began happily eating the bacon sitting there. Ginny simply rolled her eyes at the owl before opening Harry’s letter and reading it greedily. 

After she had finished reading it through for the fifth time, Ginny held the parchment close to her and smiled, Harry had written to her. To her! And he missed her. 

Ginny quickly made a beeline to her bedroom and closed the door as quietly as she could so as not to alert Mrs. Weasley to the fact that she was no longer doing the dishes. After she read through the letter again she made quick work of replying to Harry. 

Harry,

I’M SORRY, WHY ARE YOU JUST NOW TELLING ME THIS INFORMATION?! I feel like Hermione being a witch should have warranted a midnight owl to the burrow at the very least but that along with Draco? I mean, come on, Harry! I expect this lapse of judgment from Ron but, honestly, I expected more out of you. I’m not surprised she’s picking up magic as quickly as she is—she’s always been capable and intelligent. And she was ahead a year in school. Didn’t she ever tell you that? As for Draco, I’m a bit shocked that he let the hat sort him into Ravenclaw. I was worried he was going to let his dad’s influence sway his opinion too much. Good on him for pulling a Sirius though. I’m so proud. Have you told Sirius? I bet he’ll be so excited. 

Did his dad really come down to the school to force Dumbledore to move Draco? He’s so full of himself. I mean, honestly, the audacity! Then again, I’ve found that some people who have tons of money think they can just get whatever they want because they have tons of money. It’s not right of them, and I think they’re terrible people, but that’s just how it is I guess. Keep me updated on that—I’ll send Draco a letter along with this one. Can you pass it along?

Now that I’ve gotten over that shock, I’ve been ok. It feels like it’s been ages since we’ve seen each other. I’m glad that everything has turned out alright in the end. I miss you, too. It’s weird not having anyone at home to talk to except Mum and dad. I love them to bits but mum has been so overbearing since the boys left. Bill stopped by yesterday—he took me to lunch at this really nice, muggle Italian place. The food was amazing! Maybe we can go sometime. With everyone else of course. After lunch Bill took me shopping for some new clothes. He let me buy some of my uniforms for next year and Madam Malkin said she would hem them when I went shopping next year. I can’t wait to get to go to Hogwarts.

Where does this professor get off on saying things like that? You were only a baby—you didn’t defeat you-know-who on purpose or to get some sort of recognition. And you lost your mum that day—he sounds like an awful man. No wonder your dad and uncles aren’t fans of him. I hope you use that name in class! It would serve him right to have an awful nickname after how he treated you and Neville. Honestly, he sounds like he needs a good pranking. The bloody git. What I don’t understand is why your scar would hurt when you looked at him during the welcoming feast but not during class. Isn’t that an odd thing to happen? What was so special about that night that would be any different from how he reacted to you in class? I’ll talk to Bill about it but I honestly don’t think he’ll have heard of anything like that. I mean, your scar is a really unheard of effect of a curse from my understanding. Or, at least that’s what Bill told me. I’ll owl you once I’ve heard from him. 

Mum has been—well, she’s been mum. She’s been having me try to cook and you know how dreadful I am at that. The other night she had me make spaghetti for everyone for dinner and the noodles turned out like rubber and I burnt the sauce. I don’t know why she continues to insist on having me cook. Some people just aren’t good at it. I’ve been trying to break into the shed as often as I can but it’s hard because mum watches me like a hawk. It’s as if she expects me to disobey the rules or something. As if I would ever do that—I’m an angel. 

Write back soon. I miss you, Harry!

Love, 

Ginny

Ginny quickly read back over her letter before writing one to Draco too. Once she had finished, she attached both letters to Hedwig’s leg and sent the owl back off to Hogwarts. 

~ID~

Sirius and Remus both had their heads bent over a roll of parchment and several books in Remus’ office at Hogwarts when the fireplace suddenly lit up green. The two men were so engrossed in their readings and translations that neither of them noticed when a pink haired, pierced nose, punk looking woman stumbled out of the fireplace and into the coat rack that Remus kept beside it. She had actually straightened back up and brushed herself off before either of them realized she had entered the room.

Sirius had just looked up for a moment, lost in thought, about the rune translation when he caught sight of his cousin standing by the fireplace looking absolutely displeased to have been so rudely ignored. 

“Nymph!” Sirius barked as he stood up and strode over to her, a grin on his face. 

“Don’t call me Nymph. My name is Tonks you git!” Tonks said as she smiled and smacked Sirius on the arm playfully, “How are you? I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“Oh, you know, dicking around and helping old Moony here with his homework. How about you? You’re in the auror training camp, right?”

“Oh yeah. They’re training us hard over there. I actually came to see if profe—I mean, Remus, would help me with an assignment I’ve been given? I’ve been asked to look into translating some text we’ve found regarding some seriously dark magical potions that the Ministry confiscated from some foreign wizards. Do you—do you think you could help?”

Remus, unsurprisingly, hadn’t been listening to Tonks. He had, in fact, been so caught off guard that she had arrived in his office unannounced in the late hours of the evening that he didn’t even realize that he was looking at her in ways he absolutely should not be. He didn’t seem to realize that he was looking at Tonks, his eyes moving from her face, down to her chest, down to her hips, and down her legs. He momentarily wondered what those legs would feel like wrapped around his head—what she would taste like as she tightened around his tongue. 

At the sound of his name he snapped back to reality and internally chastised himself for having such thoughts about Tonks. On top of him being a werewolf, she was significantly younger than him—he wouldn’t think of straddling someone as young as her, as full of potential as her, with the burden that was himself. She would be ostracized from society, she could even be fired for being with him. They could never have children—he wouldn’t dream of it. What kind of life is that for someone as bright, as brilliant as Tonks?

“I’m so sorry,” he said once he realized that Tonks was speaking to him, “I was lost in my own thoughts—could you repeat yourself, Nymphadora?”

Tonks frowned, “It’s Tonks, not Nymphadora. I hate that name, Remus. You know that.”

Remus smiled, “And that’s exactly why I call you Nymphadora. Well, that and it suits you. It’s a unique and beautiful name much like yourself.”

Tonks blushed at the compliment while Remus’ eyes widened at the realization of what he had said hit him, “I mean, not that I think you’re beautiful. I mean, you are—beautiful, I mean, but I don’t find you—oh boy.”

Sirius stood behind Tonks miming digging a hole in the ground and then dragging his finger across his neck while grinning. He was highly amused with the spluttering that was erupting from his friend’s mouth right now. Sirius couldn’t remember a time when Remus was so flustered because of someone he found attractive. The last time might have been when Remus was interested in Mike Joseph, a man who had been a part of the order with them during the war. The two had shared a brief relationship that did not pan out. Remus had been devastated but, also, oddly understanding. 

“Anyway,” Tonks said, narrowing her eyes, “Can you help me with these translations then? I didn’t take ancient runes after my OWL year because I didn’t think I would need it to be an auror. Well, obviously now I know that was a mistake.”

“I—sure. I can take a look. I don’t know how quickly I can turn around a translation though.”

Tonks shook her head as she handed him the parchment, “No, you’re misunderstanding. I have to assist with the translations as part of my training. Apparently reading runes on a rudimentary level is a necessary skill they didn’t advise me of during my career conversations with Sprout.”

“Oh. So you—you want us to work together on this?”

“If it’s a problem I’m sure I could find someone else. Mr. Eldridge in the Department of International Cooperation knows how to read runes. I’m sure he would be more than willing to assist me.”

Remus thought for a moment as he tried to remember why the last name Eldridge rang a bell in his memory. Suddenly he remembered and his eyes burned, his face reddening, “You don’t mean that ponce Brandon Eldridge from the year above you, do you? Because, honestly, Tonks, the man is decent at translating runes but he’s not really the assisting for no charge kind of guy. It’s no wonder he ended up in the DIC—all they do is negotiate to get what they want from other countries and organizations. You’d be better off doing it on your own.”

Tonks’ eyes flashed, “Well, if you’re unwilling to help me for whatever self-righteous reason you’ve come up with today then he’ll be my only resort as Bill Weasley is currently out of the country until next month. And as I have just under a week to successfully complete this project, waiting for him to return is out of the question.”

“’Self-righteous’ now, see here, Nymphadora—”

“Don’t call me Nymphadora!” 

“That’s enough!” Sirius yelled as he stepped between the couple, “That’s enough. I’m sick of the arguing. Look, you two have some serious tension here and I personally don’t care how you decide to expel it but don’t do it by shouting my ear off. Remus, you’ll help Tonks with her translations. Tonks, you’ll stop poking Moony’s buttons, no matter how entertaining that may be.”

“Sirius, really—”

“No ‘really’, Moony. Just do it. She’s my cousin so just consider it a favor. I owe you one.”

Remus sighed as he watched Sirius step into the fireplace and disappear. He held out his hand for the parchment that Tonks was still holding and winced as she shoved it into his outstretched hands angrily. 

“Alright. Let’s get to work then, I suppose,” Remus said as the two settled in closely behind his desk and looked over the parchment. Remus could feel the warmth of her skin, smell the lavender and coriander lotions and soaps she had used that morning lingering in the air. And when he caught sight of her eyes alight with fire, whether from desire or excitement he did not know, he knew this was going to be a very long week. 

~ID~

Draco sat in the Ravenclaw common room late in the evening after everyone else had already gone to bed. His textbooks sat before him, forgotten long ago as he had received a letter earlier in the night that stole his attention away from his assignments. He had sat in this spot for a long while now, long enough that the fire was now only embers and he was having difficulty reading the neat handwriting on the parchment that remained in his hand. And, as he read through the letter for the dozenth time, he rested his head in the palm of his hand which was propped up on the table in front of him. 

Draco,

I have done much thinking and assessing over the last week that you have been at school regarding our previous conversation with Headmaster Dumbledore. I have come to the conclusion that you did not try hard enough to be sorted into Slytherin, that you do not hold to the values of the Malfoy legacy. You have continued to flaunt your unsavory friendships with the Potter and Weasley boys and it has now come to my attention that you have also befriended a Mudblood. Not only this but, from my understanding, this Mudblood is surpassing you academically in all classes. This is extremely unacceptable behavior from not only a pure blood but from a Malfoy. Should you wish to continue enjoying the benefits and amenities that coincide with being of the Malfoy family, I strongly suggest, no, I demand, that you end these relationships effective immediately. Please be aware that I will know if you have failed to follow my orders to the letter and the consequences of such failure will be dire. If it were not for your mother’s begging and my deep love for her, you would already be receiving such consequences as a result of your failure as a son to uphold the Malfoy legacy of a pure blooded Slytherin. You owe her your deepest gratitude.

Lucius Malfoy 

As Draco rested his head on the table in front of him the last of the embers burnt out, leaving him in darkness as he thought of what to do next, where to turn, and what sort of consequences his father had imagined for him this time. And, as he felt that all hope had gone, that he was going to have to sever his friendships with the people that meant the most to him, a bright and brilliant thought occurred to him. 

As the idea slowly formed in his mind, Draco grabbed a spare bit of parchment and a quill before lighting the tip of his wand. He carefully and precisely scrawled a pleading note explaining his fears and his questions. Once he had finished, he enclosed the letter his father had sent him into the envelope with his letter and stood up, determined. He carefully scrawled a single word on the envelope of the letter before sneaking out of his common room and up to the owlery where he sent the letter off, hope alight in his heart.


	36. Chapter Thirty-Six: Pure Blood Tradition

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes:
> 
> *TRIGGER WARNING!* THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS EXPLICIT CONTENT DEPICTING PHYSICAL ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.
> 
> HI everyone! Sorry for the late posting. I was super busy this weekend with family in town for my cousin's bridal shower plus wedding stuff of my own. We finished the invitations (Which look absolutely amazing!) and made some wands for the wedding. They turned out so cool! I measured some dowel rods of different thicknesses and then my dad cut them for me and did some nifty sanding so they all look unique and different. Then my sister-in-law/bridesmaid and I stained them in different shades of brown, red, black, and purples. They look bomb.
> 
> Beer of the week: I'm sorry to say that this week I didn't have any beer while writing this chapter. However, I will make a beer suggestion for anyone who cares. I highly suggest that my PA readers give Evergrain's Fluffhead a try if they can get their hands on it! It's a delicious hefeweizen-it has a lovely balance of clove and banana flavor along with this super silky, creamy mouth-feel. It goes down way too easily. When I can find it canned it's likely I'll down the six-pack in one sitting.
> 
> Comments: Midnitewanderer: I'm really glad you loved the Hinny-I wasn't sure about how I wanted to put that in there so I really appreciate the feedback. So, I remember the scene you're talking about with the muffin where Hermione made it appear *seemingly* out of thin air. The only Marauder around was Remus who was way too focused on Jean to notice Hermione's sly use of magical abilities. I think what you're remembering about Harry is him expressing a hope that Hermione was magical-a belief to which I believe the Marauder's put to rest quickly. My hope is to continue to include Hermione's family in this story because I agree they really get cast aside. HA! I love your pun-You never know what may or may not happen in the offices at Hogwarts Castle. ;) As for Lucy, I don't want to give anything in this chapter away so I'll just say that I think you'll have some questions answered here. Thank you for your amazing compliments and encouragement! I'm so glad you continued to read; I look forward to your comments every week!
> 
> ProfessorMarauder: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! I was super excited to finally have a natural moment to insert some Hinny. Smallwjl: Oh trust me, I have some ideas on the stone front! I'm super excited for that. Also, it is definitely not my intention to cure Remus. However, I do believe that he would have been hard core researching for a cure-that doesn't mean he's going to find one, though. I agree that his disease is a pivotal character point for Remus and I would never take that away from him. Guest: I mean, I get what you're saying. Looking back I agree that that wouldn't make a lot of sense. I'm sorry that's the reason you're deciding to not continue to read my story. Thank you for giving it a shot though! Potter671: I'm glad you've enjoyed my story so far and I'm sorry that you got to be spoiled with the first 35 chapters and now have to wait for updates-that's the worst! But also exciting when the chapter posts. Thank you for the awesome review!
> 
> Thank you everyone for your reviews! Please enjoy this next chapter of Ignoring Destiny!

Chapter Thirty-Six: Pure Blood Tradition

Harry and Ron quickly made their way down the staircase from their dormitory to find a new notice pinned up in the common room. Both boys had a surge of excitement followed by a groan as the read. Flying lessons would be starting on today—and Gryffindor and Slytherin would be learning together. 

“Great,” said Harry, “I just wanted to have to sit through another class with Zabini. Have you heard the comments he’s made about us?”

Ron nodded his head a frowned, “Yeah. They aren’t as bad as what he’s been saying about Hermione. I swear I almost had to deck him yesterday after Potions.”

Harry’s eyes darkened, “What did he say about Hermione?”

Ron shook his head, “Don’t worry about it. Zabini probably isn’t that great on a broom anyway so at least you can show him up at classes.”

Harry grinned and ran his fingers through his hair, making it look more windswept than it previously had, “Yeah, good point. He won’t have much to talk about if I out race him.”

Ron and Harry waited impatiently for Hermione to descend the staircase. After about five minutes they saw her nearly bouncing down the stairs in excitement for today’s classes.

“Morning!” 

“Hey, check out the notice board,” Ron said as he nodded his head towards the board.

Hermione frowned before making her way over. Her face grew greener as she read the notice, “Oh my. I didn’t—I didn’t anticipate having a class about flying. I mean, I know wizards use that as a mode of transportation but I didn’t think it would be required for anyone who wasn’t interested in the house teams.”

“Course it is!” Ron supplied, “Can’t have rouge wizards who can’t even manage a broom, can we? Anyway, we’ve got the class with the Slytherins, did you see?”

“Yes. And you’ll watch your mouth in front of them. I now they’re stupid, but I don’t like the looks of that Crabbe and Goyle. And that Zabini is smart—I don’t know.”

The three of them made their way down to breakfast as they discussed the implications of the infamous trio of Crabbe, Goyle, and Zabini. They quickly took a seat at the Gryffindor table next to Neville and started eating their breakfast. It wasn’t long before they were joined by Draco part way through breakfast. 

“Morning,” Hermione said brightly, “Did you see the notice board this morning?”

Draco nodded, “Yeah. Hey, I’m going to sit with the Ravenclaws this morning. It’s—I’ll explain why during class later, ok?” 

They noticed Draco glancing around the room, as if searching for someone, and they nodded, perplexed by this sudden change in routine. Draco nodded back solemnly before making his way to the Ravenclaw table where he proceeded to eat a slice of toast for breakfast while he glanced around, waiting for the mail. 

“What was that about?” Ron asked, “He acted like someone was going to jump out and kill him.”

“His father has been on his case ever since he was sorted into Ravenclaw,” Hermione supplied, “I’m sure that it’s got him a bit jumpy. But still—I wonder if something else has happened.”

Harry looked over at Draco, concern for his friend filling him, just as the morning post arrived and interrupted him. 

A large barn owl landed in front of Neville with a small package from his grandmother. He eagerly opened it and then showed the other three the small glass ball, about the size of a marble, that the box contained.

“Oh wow!” Hermione exclaimed, “Neville, is it real?”

He nodded, “Yeah. It’s a Rememberall! Gran knows I forget everything—this tells you if you’ve forgotten something or if there’s something you were supposed to do and haven’t. You’re supposed to hold it tight like this and—oh,” they watched as the smoke in the ball turned red, “It seems I’ve forgotten something…”

Harry looked at Neville who looked completely ordinary to him. Perhaps it was some homework? He shifted in his seat as his leg started to fall asleep and pulled his robes from under him so they weren’t as tight—“Neville! You’ve forgotten your school robes!”

Neville’s eyes widened as he looked down at himself in shock and realized that he had indeed forgotten to put his robes on that morning, “Oh no. Oh no! I’m going to be late to class. I’d better hurry before I get docked points. Thanks Harry!”

Neville jumped up, intending to run from the great hall when a hand came out and snatched the Rememberall from his hand.

Ron and Harry jumped to their feet, half hoping for a reason to beat Zabini to a pulp, but McGonagall was there in a flash.

“What’s going on here?”

“Zabini’s got my Rememberall, Professor.”

Zabini quickly dropped the Rememberall back on the table, “I was just looking, Professor,” he smiled brilliantly before gliding away, Crabbe and Goyle behind him.

McGonagall frowned at the exchange and looked back at the four Gryffindors, “You four, I expect there to be no fighting during breakfast. Do I make myself clear?”

Harry nodded, “Yes Nan—Professor.”

McGonagall nodded and quickly strode away as Neville also rushed away to get the rest of his uniform for classes.

~ID~

An Eagle owl landed in front of Draco with a small package of what looked like cookies from his mother. Draco smiled sadly, he knew that his father was only allowing his mother to send these packages out of appearances yet he still loved to receive them because he knew his mother sent them with love. He quickly dug to the bottom of the package where he knew the hidden note would be. 

My son,

Keep your head up and your toes in line—I am working on calming your father down. 

All my love,

Mum

Yeah, he thought, like that was going to happen. He sighed and pocketed the note before eating a biscuit. She had made his favorite, orange and candied ginger snaps. He smiled as he ate the cookie in silence and looked back up at the owls flying overhead. He had hoped to get a response today—he couldn’t stay away from his friends forever. Draco shuddered at the idea of what would happen to him without his friends’ influences.

~ID~

Sirius stepped out of the fireplace in Remus’ office early that morning in the hopes of catching the elusive professor before his classes began for the day. What he wasn’t prepared for was the sight that greeted him when he looked around the office. 

He grinned maliciously at the sight before him, savoring the blackmail inducing compromising situation that was Remus and Tonks asleep on the couch in Remus’ office. Remus had slid down and was partially reclined against the arm of the couch with his legs spread on the floor with Tonks’ natural, mousy brown hair spread across his chest and lap as she, too had slid down in her sleep. Despite the awkwardness of their pose, the two looked extremely comfortable and relaxed in their sleep. Sirius almost hated having to wake them up. 

Almost. 

“Oy! Lupin! That’s my cousin you’re sleeping with there! What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Sirius yelled at the couple as he, somehow, managed to mask his amusement and feign anger and shock. 

The two jumped out of sleep, their eyes opening groggily. It took several breaths before either of them realized what was happening. 

It was Remus who realized first. He looked down at Tonks, who still had her head resting on his chest, his heart beating quickly in his chest as he felt her warm face pressed against him. He instinctively put his arm around her in a protective stance and squeezed her arm as he looked back up at Sirius, his golden eyes hardening as he realized what was going on. 

When Tonks felt Remus’ arm slide around her protectively, she looked up at him, confused, before looking over at Sirius, who was standing before them angrily. As she shifted to sit up more comfortably, she was disappointed to feel Remus quickly pull his arm away from her and his body stiffen as she shifted. 

“What the fuck is your problem?” Remus asked, his eyes dark.

“More like ‘What’s your problem?’” Tonks mumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest and changed her hair to purple. 

Remus wheeled towards Tonks, his eyes ablaze, “Would you like to share that with the rest of the class?”

Tonks averted her eyes and mumbled, “No, sir.”

Sirius smirked, “I honestly can’t believe you two—sleeping together in Remus’ office,” he tisked, “Really now, is that a good example to be setting for your students? What if Harry had walked in?”

Remus rolled his eyes and stood up, “Honestly, Sirius, do you really think we were doing anything? We worked late and we both fell asleep. It wasn’t—it isn’t like that.”

“Like what?” Tonks snapped, her eyes flashing, “Because if you’re indicating that—”

“I’m not indicating anything!” Remus snapped, “And you! What gives you the right to just come into my office, without notice, and yell at me for sleeping? What do you want?”

“Moony, chill. I was just trying to get under your fur,” Sirius winked with a grin, “I’m here to see Draco. He wrote me and I was hoping to talk to him before his dad does.”

“Well, I hate to break it to you but you can’t just show up at Hogwarts and demand to see a kid that doesn’t belong to you.”

Sirius shrugged and held out a letter to Remus, “Dumbledore said I was welcome to come talk to him. Apparently he’s worried about how Malfoy is going to react to Draco not wanting to abandon his friends.”

“What do you mean abandon his friends? Why would he stop being friends with Ron, Harry, and Hermione?”

“Apparently his dad owled him and told him that if he didn’t stop being friends with Harry, Ron, and Hermione there would be ‘dire consequences’.”

“Do you mean Lucy Malfoy? That guy is such an ass. He walks around the Ministry like he owns the place—it’s ridiculous,” Tonks supplied.

“Lucy?” Remus asked as Sirius burst out laughing.

Tonks nodded, “Lucius. Some of us who can’t stand him call him Lucy. I mean, he’s a cry baby so it works out, right?”

Sirius slapped a hand on Tonks’ shoulder and laughed, “Girl, we really are related! Lucy Malfoy. Ha! Anyway, I came to talk to Draco about the potential issues with his dad’s letter. Do you know what class he would be in?”

Remus sighed, “Probably Transfiguration. I know lunch is around 12; I can go down and grab him and bring him up. You two can have lunch in my office. Why don’t you come back then?”

Sirius wiggled his eyebrows at Remus and Tonks, “I see what’s going on here. You two want to be alone, don’t you?”

Tonks rolled her eyes and stood up, brushing her hair with her fingers as she pushed past Sirius, “Please. As if I would give Lupin the time of day.”

“Right,” Remus snorted, “It’s you who won’t give me the time of day.”

“Regardless, let’s just get back to work on this translation, alright? I have to have it done in six days, you know.”

“I’ll leave you two love birds to your work,” Sirius said as he made finger gun motions at Tonks and Remus before making a graceful exit via the floo network.

“What was his deal?” Remus asked as he stared at the now empty fireplace. 

Tonks sighed as she picked up the book that lay open on the desk. She knew exactly what Sirius was up to—he wasn’t exactly hiding his motifs here. As she looked back at Remus, who’s eyes were now glued on the document they were working on, the liquid gold intense with concentration, she couldn’t help but wonder whether he knew too, and was playing dumb, or if he was really too thick to figure out what was going on.

~ID~

Draco kept his head down as he quickly made his way into the great hall for lunch. He had been doing his best to avoid his friends today but it had already been proving difficult to keep that up. 

He hadn’t had a chance to tell them why he was avoiding them during transfiguration. McGonagall had ended up spending the entire lesson lecturing them on changing matchsticks into needles—Draco had thought they might begin working on the incantation which would have given him the opportunity to whisper to Harry, Ron, or Hermione what was up. 

As he walked into the great hall he averted his eyes away from the Gryffindor table where his friends were already seated. He could see them from the corner of his eye trying to waive him over but he simply ignored them. He knew that several of the Slytherins were watching his every move during break times and he didn’t want to risk anything happening to his friends because he gave in to his desires. 

He had just begun wondering whether he would get a return owl during lunch when Remus approached him. He looked up carefully, worried about attracting the attention of the Slytherins two tables over. 

“Mr. Malfoy. Professor McGonagall asked me to fetch you for your detention. You will be assisting me in my office organizing my translations. Please come with me for the duration of your lunch period.”

“But—”

“No buts, Mr. Malfoy. When you fail to turn in your assignments you receive detentions, that’s just how it works at Hogwarts,” Remus winked. 

Draco, finally catching on, nodded, “Right. I forgot about that. Should I bring some lunch with me?”

“No need, I had the elves send up some sandwiches.”

Grabbing his bag, Draco scurried off after Remus, doing is best to look straight ahead and not give any indication that he had looked at the Gryffindors who were now curiously and anxiously watching him leave the hall. 

The pair made their way to Remus’ office quickly—they entered the room and Remus quickly shut and silenced the door before turning to Draco. 

“I’m sure you’re probably confused as to why I lied about a detention to bring you to my office, right?”

“A little bit,” Draco admitted.

“Right. Sirius got your letter and I figured that, with your dad threatening you and saying he would know if you remained friends with Harry and company that he has spies at Hogwarts. I didn’t want to give them anything of interest to report back. Sirius should be here momentarily to discuss your letter with you. I’ve had the elves bring up a lunch for you. I’ll be headed out to the book store—an order I placed for a rare text came in and I’m anxious to get my hands on it. I think it’ll help Nymphadora and I’s research immensely.”

“Who’s Nymphadora?”

Remus’ eyes widened, “That’s right, you wouldn’t have met your Aunt Dromeda. No, the Black family disowned her decades ago for marrying a muggle born—Ted Tonks. Nymphadora Tonks is her daughter, your cousin. They’re wonderful people, you’d love them.”

“I didn’t realize I had another aunt. Mother tells me about my Aunt Bella, but she’s in Azkaban. Well, father says she’s in there until the Dark Lord returns,” Draco paled, “From what Father has told me, I hope she never gets out.”

“I hope she stays where she is, too.”

Just then the fireplace lit up green and the devilishly handsome Sirius Black stepped out of the fire and into the office, a grin on his face as he caught sight of Draco. 

“Oh Draco, the black sheep of the Malfoy family,” he wiped an imaginary tear from his eye, “Come to me for advice on the ways of disobeying pure blood parents. I’m so proud to have properly corrupted you.” 

Draco gave a half-hearted smile at Sirius while glancing back at Remus. Remus was simply standing there with his arms crossed, a look of annoyance on his face.

“Well,” he said as he clapped his hands together, “I’ll leave you two to it while I run to Diagon Alley. See you in a bit.”

As Remus left his office Sirius took a seat on the couch and slapped the space next to him, indicating that Draco should take a seat. He sat down gingerly, unsure of how this conversation was going to go. If he were honest, he hadn’t anticipated an in person conversation with Sirius—he had merely expected return post with some advice. Now he was worried as to what that advice was going to be since Sirius thought it so prudent that he needed to make a personal appearance. 

It didn’t take long for Draco to come to the realization that Sirius simply loved the dramatics that came with him speaking to Draco in person. 

“Draco, Draco, Draco. This is a surprise. I’m so happy that you followed in my footsteps and ignored your family traditions and were sorted into the noble house of Ravenclaw. You should be proud of yourself! That takes guts. Honestly, maybe you should have been a Gryffindor. Ah well. No changing that now. Which brings us to the point of your letter,” Sirius dramatically flourished the parchment that Draco had sent to him the previous evening and cleared his throat before reading it aloud. 

“Sirius, that’s me, I’ve enclosed a letter from my Father…blah, blah, blah—he wants me to ditch Harry, Ron, and Hermione but they’re my friends, I don’t know if I could make it at Hogwarts with out them. Blah, blah, blah. You’re the only one who knows what I’m going through. What did you do when you were sorted into Gryffindor?

Sirius threw the letter aside and leaned back in his seat, his hands behind his head as he smiled, “I remember my sorting clearly but not as clearly as the next day when I got a howler in the mail from my father shouting at me for breaking family tradition. ‘How dare I consort with mudbloods and half-bloods!’ Honestly, he didn’t get to the point of telling me to drop my dorm mates as friends until about fifth year when we started hanging out with Evans more—that’s Harry’s mum. Anyway, at that point he decided that my dorm mates were a ‘bad influence’ on me and that I needed to sort out my priorities. I tried to stop being friends with them—I was afraid of my father’s wrath. I imagine that your father is much like mine; sticks to the pure blood values and punishments?”

Sirius paused for a moment and glanced over at Draco who had been listening intently. When he saw Draco nod solemnly he frowned and continued, “Anyway—I was worried, not for myself at that point, I had already received every creative punishment my father could conceive of, but for my friends and their safety. Especially Remus given his fury little problem. My father had influences in the Ministry and I absolutely could not allow him to find out about that or Remus could be severely punished by the government. So, I talked to Monty about what was going on with my dad. I’m here to give you the same advice that Monty told me.”

After a long, dramatic pause, Draco finally asked, “What advice?”

Sirius, who had closed his eyes as if to go to sleep, opened one and eyed Draco before sitting up, “That sometimes our real family aren’t the same people who gave us life. Family is thicker than blood. 

“After our talk I ignored my father’s demands. Nothing happened to my friends but when I went home that summer…well, that was the worst punishment I ever received from Orion Black—and it was the last. I packed my bag that night and showed up on James’ doorstep, bleeding and bruised, and asked to stay for a few nights until I could figure things out. Fee and Monty ended up keeping me for the summer and giving me a place to live until I moved out when I was 18. They were like the parents I always wanted and James was the brother I wish mine had been. 

“I guess my point is that, no matter what happens, Lucy can’t do anything to you that you can’t get away from because you’ll always have a home at Potter Manner with us.”

Draco looked down at his hands and was surprised to find them tightly wound together. He carefully pulled them apart and wiped them on his robes before asking, slowly, “Did your father teach you how different family curses worked by using them on you and forcing you to watch them used on other people?”

Sirius’ eyes hardened before he gulped and slowly nodded, “It’s a pure blood tradition.” The last word Sirius spoke came out dripping with venom and animosity. 

“Before I left for school,” Draco paused, his throat was dry and he tried to moisten it by swallowing, when that didn’t work he simply pressed on, his voice raspy, “Before I left for school, father told me that there was a family spell I needed to learn and it—it causes the victim’s blood to boil until the connection is broken. If it’s used too long the victim—the victim dies. I don’t—I don’t want to have him use that on me. I—I love my mother but I don’t want to go home to father.”

As Sirius listened to Draco detailing the various spells his father has tested on him, he was pulled back to a time before he could defend himself in his own home, a time when he was completely powerless. He watched, as if from the sidelines of some sick, twisted sports game, his own father use the blood boiling spell on him as a young child for refusing to complete his assignments and mouthing off to his tutor. 

“Fierbe sânele,” Orion said calmly as he pointed his wand at a young boy with long, wavy, black hair. 

Sirius looked Orion in the eye as he felt his body heating up, his blood becoming hot in his veins. As he grew hotter, his blood feeling as if it were searing the veins it was flowing through, he continued to look Orion in the eyes, refusing to break contact and admit weakness. 

After several seconds, Orion’s face contorted into an evil smile as he watched his son slowly boil from the inside out. He could see Sirius’ face turning bright red, could see his veins protruding from his skin all over his body. He could almost feel the heat of his blood emanating from his skin when Sirius finally broke eye contact and collapsed onto the ground screaming as what felt like boiling water poured throughout his body and into his heart, burning him alive. 

Despite Sirius’ submission to Orion’s dominance, Orion allowed the spell to continue for several agonizing seconds to allow the punishment to take its full effect on Sirius before finally ending the spell. He then simply waived his wand and doused Sirius in ice cold water, chilling his body while Sirius coughed and held his chest, his eyes watering. 

“Get up you unruly mess—before I force you to your feet.”

Sirius struggled to his feet, the fire in his eyes never dying, never dulling, as he averted his gaze from his father. He could still feel the boiling water in his veins but it was slowly fading—his fingertips felt cool again. 

“You’re an ungrateful child—you’re worse than that mudblood-loving, no good cousin of yours,” Orion spat on the floor, “If I catch you speaking that way to anyone again, I won’t lift that curse and I’ll let you boil alive from the inside out.”

“Yes, Father. I’m sorry, Father.”

Orion looked Sirius up and down again and smiled maliciously, “And, just to reinforce this lesson, I feel a more…permanent reminder is in order. Cultro!” 

Sirius cried out as what felt like a knife drug itself down his forehead, through his eyebrow, and stopping at his cheek bone, avoiding his eye. He felt the warm stickiness of the blood pour down his face and into his mouth as he cried out and grabbed his face, the red-hot sting of the wound blinding him. He felt the hot blood pour down his hand as he tried to close the wound with magic—trying and failing. 

As Sirius collapsed to his knees, Orion turned from the doorway and spoke one last time, “Be sure to not get any blood on my carpet or you’ll end up like the house elves—stuffed and hung on the wall. Once you stop bleeding, have Kreacher heal you.”

Sirius some how managed to hold himself together until Orion had left the room. Then he collapsed onto the floor and curled into a ball, the blood dripping down his face as he cried. 

“Sirius?” Draco called, waiving his hand in Sirius’ face, “Are you listening?”

Sirius absentmindedly touched his eyebrow where he was missing a patch of his eyebrow—right where the nearly invisible scar ran down his face, before looking at Draco, his grey eyes distant. “I—yeah, yeah I am. I’m sorry—I—I remember that spell. Just—avoid letting your father use that spell on you, ok?”

“Which one?” 

“The—the blood boiling spell. Just—it’s not a fun time.” 

“Ok…” Draco said, trailing off, “So, what should I do about his threat? About Harry, Ron, and Hermione? I don’t want to not be friends with them. They’re like family.” 

“What’s your father going to do to you while you’re at school? The most he could do is send you a howler. And, for holidays, like I told you, James, Remus, and I have agreed that you’re more than welcome to stay at Potter Manner. Harry would get a kick out of having you with us. Just think about it, ok?”

Draco nodded just as the bell sounded for the end of the lunch period, “Thank you for talking to me. I really appreciate it. Can I—can I write to you? Just if I need to talk or get advice or—whatever.”

Sirius smacked his forehead and mumbled a few swear words as he went digging through his pockets before pulling out a small, brown package, “I completely forgot—Remus rigged this up for you. It’s connected to James’, Remus’, mine, and Harry’s. This way you can contact us more quickly if you need to. You can still write, but sometimes a face-to-face meeting is better. Just hold it up to your face and say whoever’s name you want to talk to and their mirror will vibrate.”

Curious, Draco quickly unwrapped the package and found a small, square mirror inside. He looked back at Sirius, unsure of whether to believe him or chalk this up to a joke. 

Sirius nodded at the mirror, “Try it. Call Harry, he’ll get a kick out of this—we didn’t tell him we were making you one.”

Frowning, Draco held the mirror up to his face and said, “Harry.”

He waited for several seconds as he looked at himself in the mirror. He could see his blonde hair falling slightly into his face, and then, suddenly, his face was replaced with another boy’s, one who had dark hair and glasses. 

Harry looked surprised, “Draco? How are you calling my mirror?”

“Uh—” Draco started before looking over at Sirius, who was nodding at him to continue, “Your dad and uncles made one for me. So I can talk to you guys without risking being over heard and stuff.”

“Why would that be a problem?”

“Well…my dad owled me the other night. He threatened me to stop having contact with you, Ron, and Hermione. I owled Sirius for advice and, well, he gave me this.”

“Your dad did what!” Harry asked, half yelling. 

“Yeah. We can talk about it later though—I’m going to be late for Potions and you’re going to be late for flying. I’ll talk to you guys at dinner, ok?”

Harry nodded before disappearing from the mirror. Draco quickly bid his thanks and goodbyes to Sirius before rushing off to class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, kudos, and review!


	37. Chapter Thirty-Seven: Quidditch

Author’s Notes:

I don’t own or have the rights to Harry Potter or the characters. That’s all Joanne.

Hi everyone! I hope y’all have had a good week. I’ve been super busy this week with more wedding stuff and changing my last name and such. Honestly, this week has just flown by. I’ve been working a lot on my cross stitching for my best friend’s wedding! It’s a Harry Potter compilation with Fawkes, a dementor, Harry’s patronus, and other small HP themed things. It’s turning out great…. except for when I miscount stitches and have to completely backtrack because the colors look so much alike. That’s super frustrating. 

Beer of the Week: I’m going to be honest with you guys, my beers are going to keep being cheep shit for a while—Still no job. Anyway, this week I drank Miller Highlife because we had some lying around from a party. However, if you want a really good beer suggestion I would grab up some of Troegs’ Haze Charmer. I’m not a huge IPA fan, but this NE IPA was pretty delicious and super citrusy. 

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: I’m not crying, you are! I thought you would enjoy Harry’s little slip ups—also, no idea where I got Lucy from, totally made that up! Lol. So, Bree was totally my influence for last chapter. Her history with the Cruciatus was absolutely chilling but I feel that she eluded to a lot more abuse than we actually got to see so I wanted to see how much worse Orion was to him. And before you read this chapter, I totally forgot about the specific contents of your review before I finished this chapter. I did get all the feels that you noticed my late posting! Sorry I worried you, it’s been very busy here—doing my best not to go all bridezilla with my Rona-wedding! ProfessorMarauder: I’m glad that you enjoyed last chapter! I’m not a fan of plot induced stupidity either. I really try to make my story as natural as possible and I think that really helps eliminate that issue. You will definitely get your questions answered throughout my story!

PunksterNL: OOOi I LOVE beer suggestions! I’m definitely going to seek that beer out now! It sounds amazing and I’m a sucker for a good double. I got a huge laugh out of “Really makes you want to introduce both Orion and Lucy to Aragog’s loving family.” I mean…I’m not ruling that out. Ha! LadyKahlan: Oh my gosh I’m so sorry! I was still getting used to writing. I’ll have to go back and edit. Thanks for the heads up on that! WinkingSkeever: Ask and you shall receive. 

Thank you everyone for reviewing and keeping up with my story! Please remember to leave a review—you guys brighten my days and remind me why I keep writing! I love you all! Stay safe and enjoy this update!

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Quidditch

As Harry, Ron, and Hermione made their way down to the quidditch pitch for their flying lesson, Harry filled the other two in on his brief conversation with Draco. Hermione lamented the fact that Draco’s father had forbidden him to have contact or relations with his friends while Ron merely scoffed and said he wasn’t overly surprised given who his father is. 

“Yeah, well, I guess his conversation with Uncle Padfoot went well because Draco seems like he’s going to ignore Lucy’s new rules.”

“Who’s Lucy?” Hermione asked as she picked out a broom. She grimaced as she held it in her hand.

“Oh! That’s what Uncle Sirius called Draco’s dad. His name is Lucius Malfoy but Uncle Sirius calls him Lucy. I think it’s kind of funny.”

Ron snorted and then put the broom he had picked up back and snatched up another one. It must have been to his liking because he nodded and kept it. 

“Anyway—he said he would explain more at dinner. I hope this isn’t anything too serious.”

“There’s no use speculating about things we don’t know,” Hermione said as she took a place in the grass amongst the other Gryffindors, “We’ll know everything after class.”

“Suppose you’re right, Mione,” Ron said as he looked his broom over again, “You know, maybe I should pick a different broom. This one has some weird notches in it—” 

Just as Ron was about to move off to a different broom, Madam Hooch arrived.

“Well,” she barked, “What are you all waiting for? Everyone put their brooms back on the ground and stand beside them. Come on now, hurry up! Now stick out your right hand over your broom and say ‘Up!’” 

Everyone around them began shouting ‘Up!’ over and over. Harry had no problems summoning his broom as it flew right into his hand on the first try. Hermione’s simply rolled over on the ground—but at least hers moved some. Neville’s broom refused to move even a centimeter on the ground. Ron managed to summon his brooms after a few tries and was delighted when it touched his hand. 

After summoning their brooms Madam Hooch showed them how to mount their brooms. Harry was delighted when she told him he had perfect form. He was even graced with a slight, tight-lipped smile. 

“Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard,” she said, “Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet, and then come straight back down by leaning forward slightly, on my whistle—three—two—” 

But Neville, nervous and jumpy and frightened of being left on the ground, pushed off hard before the whistle had touched Madam Hooch’s lips.

“Come back, Longbottom!” she shouted, but Neville was rising straight up like a cork shot out of a bottle—twelve feet—twenty feet. Harry saw his scared white face look down at the ground falling away, saw him gasp, slip sideways off the broom and—WHAM—a thud and a nasty crack left Neville laying facedown on the grass in a heap. His broomstick was still rising higher and higher, and started to drift lazily toward the forbidden forest and out of sight. 

Madam Hooch was bending over Neville, her face as white as his, “Broken wrist,” she muttered, “Come on boy—it’s alright, up you get. To the hospital wing with you, now.”

She turned to the rest of the class, “None of you is to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are or you’ll be out of Hogwarts before you can say ‘Quidditch!’ Come on, dear.”

Once Madam Hooch had walked off with Neville and was out of sight, Harry, Ron, and Hermione picked their conversation back up once again. 

“What do you think Lucy threatened Draco with, anyway?” Harry asked.

Ron had only just opened his mouth to respond when a snide voice piped up behind them. 

“Do you mean Draco Malfoy? The blood traitor? I heard Lord Malfoy plans to give him the pure blood punishment over the holidays for his…in discretion,” Blaise Zabini scoffed, a wicked grin on his face, “You know, I knew him from childhood and I honestly can’t say I’m surprised—he always seemed like the mudblood loving type. He was always a little too fond of things that were—dirty.”

Harry and Ron shouted in outrage in unison over Zabini’s slur, both boys suddenly ready for a fight.

“You watch your mouth, Zabini, or I’ll watch it for you!” Ron shouted.

“Touch words for a Weasley. Honestly, I’m surprised your parents could afford to send another kid to school. Really, how many of you are there? Thirty?”

“Shut up, Zabini. No one gives a rats ass about what you have to say,” Harry said darkly.

“Ah, yes, and Potter. My mother has told me all about you—you’re the reason the Dark Lord fell ten years ago. Well, at least he took your mudblood mother with him,” Zabini sneered. 

Harry lunged at Zabini but was shocked to be met with only air. He looked around wildly before realizing that Zabini had taken flight and was now already 30 feet in the air and was rising rapidly. Harry quickly rushed to his broom and made chase—flying after Zabini faster than he had ever flown. 

Harry could hear Hermione and Ron calling after him but he didn’t care—Zabini would pay for what he said about his mother. He could hear the screams and gasps from the people back on the ground as he gave his broom a sharp turn so he could face Zabini in midair. Zabini scowled.

“Come to tell me off, Potter? Or are you just going to glare at me to death?”

“Apologize for what you said about my mum and I’ll let you alone, Zabini!” 

Zabini gave Harry a dramatic sigh and began tossing a small, glass ball into the air and catching it, “Now, Potter, why would I apologize for telling the truth?”

Harry had a retort ready, but his eyes were focused on the clear ball that Zabini was playing with. Then it dawned on him what the object was, “Give it back, Zabini! That’s not yours!”

Zabini cocked his head and dramatically caught the Rememberall before holding it up between his index finger and thumb, “What? This piece of junk? I found it on the ground. Ugly little thing, isn’t it?”

“It’s Neville’s and you stole it from him. Give it here or I’ll knock you off your broom!”

Zabini paled, he wasn’t nearly as strong of a flyer as Harry was and he knew it, “This piece of junk?” he shrugged, “Well, catch it if you can, then.”

Zabini turned on his broom and chucked the glass ball as far as he could. It arched in the air before beginning to plummet to the ground again. 

Harry didn’t have time to look at Zabini, to even give him a second thought before his eye instinctively caught sight of the Rememberall and followed its path. Harry quickly measured where the ball was going before speeding off, flying so closely to Zabini that the twigs on his broom smacked Zabini in the face. 

It was a wonderous feeling to fly high above the ground, the wind whipping his face and the clouds so much closer than normal. Some part of his mind registered that feeling, that joy and happiness that he felt as he sped towards the Rememberall. In fact, his mind was so preoccupied that he undercalculated where it was headed and arrived too high for the ball. Thinking quickly, Harry performed a fantastic flip in the air, reached out his hand, and snatched the small glass ball from the air and held it tight in his hand. 

Smiling, Harry flew back to the ground amidst a roar of applause and cheers. He could see Ron’s delighted face shouting his approval next to a very disgruntled looking Hermione. 

Landing lightly on his feet, Harry held the Rememberall aloft in the air as everyone cheered around him. Until, suddenly, the cheering stopped and the shocked gasps started. 

The color drained from Harry’s face as he remembered Madam Hooch’s warning. Was he going to get expelled? He may as well begin packing his bags now. 

“Mr. Potter! Come with me!” a familiar voice called to Harry from the entry way of the castle, “Before I summon the Headmaster for this—indiscretion!”

Harry slowly turned and saw his green robed, purple hatted, honorary grandmother staring down at him, her lips closed so tightly all that was left was a line where he mouth used to be. For some reason, this sight scared him more than the idea of being caught by Madam Hooch. Harry suddenly recalled the few times he dared to disobey Minerva McGonagall as a child. He shuddered at the memories. 

As he approached McGonagall, she turned on her heel and strode off, clearly under the assumption that Harry would simply follow her. And follow her he did. 

They had walked into the castle and up several flights of stairs before Harry risked speaking, “Er—Nana? Where are we going?”

“Mr. Potter, during school hours you shall address me as Professor McGonagall. As for where we are going, we’re going to get Wood.”

Harry frowned. He wasn’t sure what wood was. He wondered vaguely if it was a cane or a bat used for punishments. He had heard the caretaker muttering about stringing students up by their thumbs—perhaps this was common discipline. 

After a few more minutes of silence Harry plucked up the courage to ask, “Na—Professor, what is wood?”

McGonagall merely ignored Harry as they strode into the Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom and interrupted what looked to be a fifth year class. 

“Professor Quirrell, I’m sorry to interrupt but may I borrow Wood for a moment?” Professor McGonagall asked a startled Professor Quirrell.

“Oh, my, yes. Go ahead, Wood.”

A tall boy with brown hair stood up and strode out of the classroom and into the hall. It was there that McGonagall and Wood discussed between them Harry’s position on the Gryffindor team. After the discussion, McGonagall led Harry down to the entrance hall. 

“Just you wait until James hears about this. Mail him quickly—we need to get you a proper broom. We can’t have our seeker on those school brooms,” McGonagall made a rude sound as she waived her hand in the air, “Anyway. Go and enjoy your dinner. Please be sure to keep your position on the team quiet for now. We don’t want this spread about the school, now. Off with you, boy.”

Harry nodded and began walking into the great hall before stopping and turning on his heel. He quickly ran to McGonagall and threw his arms around her in a tight hug while no one was in the hall before letting go again. 

“Thanks for not having me expelled, Nana.”

McGonagall grinned at Harry, her eyes watering slightly, before she waived him into the great hall again. 

~ID~

As Draco made his way into the great hall for dinner, he noted how empty it was still. He had arrived early for dinner so he could prepare himself for the questions and comments he was going to be bombarded with by his friends. He sighed inwardly before making his way to the Gryffindor table. He could feel the stares from several of the Slytherins as he took a seat; he wondered just how many of them were reporting to their parents to report to his father.

Draco wasn’t a stranger to the ways of what his father called his friends. He knew that many of the parents of Slytherin students had once been death eaters. It wasn’t a secret within his household but it definitely was when it came to the public eye. And there was no way to prove that these people, who had been acquitted of their crimes for various reasons, had actually been in Lord Voldemort’s gang of cronies. And Draco knew that those who remained on the outside were still close with one another—like a co-symbiotic relationship. And it was because of those relationships that Draco knew at least one of those students would be sending reports of his goings on at Hogwarts. 

Draco did his best not to continue to glance across the hall at the Slytherin table while he started serving himself dinner and waited for Harry, Ron, and Hermione to get back from flying class. He didn’t have to wait long for Ron and Hermione, however, because it was only a few minutes after he started eating when he caught a glimpse of their familiar faces making their way into the great hall. 

“I still can’t believe he did that! He’s going to be in so much trouble. He must be with Dumbledore, I bet that’s why he’s not at dinner yet,” Hermione said quickly as she took a seat next to Draco.

“Oh come off it, Hermione. Give the bloke a break. Harry was fantastic! He really can fly.”

Draco furrowed his brow, clearly he had missed something important, “What did I miss? What did Harry do?”

“Oi, mate, you should have seen it!” Ron quickly relayed the events from flying class in excruciating detail. 

Hermione rolled her eyes as Ron finished the story dramatically by telling Draco that McGonagall dragged Harry away by his ear, “That’s not how it happened, Ron. You’re over embellishing. McGonagall and Harry walked back into the castle and we haven’t seen him since. He didn’t even finish our first lesson!”

“Well, I think you’ll have seen him now,” Draco said as he nodded towards the door to the great hall.

Ron and Hermione whipped their heads around and saw Harry making his way towards them, a shit eating grin on his face. 

“Hey guys,” Harry said as he took a seat, “I’m starving. Glad you’re here tonight, Draco. Are you going to explain what’s been going on?”

“Only after you tell us how many days of detention you got,” Draco said as he smiled back at Harry and threw a chunk of bread at him.

“Come off it—I didn’t get any detention. I got put onto the school team,” Harry said nonchalantly.

Draco’s cheeks flushed at this statement, jealousy rising in him, “But you didn’t even try out.”

“I know. It doesn’t seem very fair to everyone else—but it’s better than getting detentions, right?”

“I guess. The Ravenclaw team is hosting tryouts this week for a chaser and seeker position. I think I’m going to try out. Father wanted me to be on a house team, anyway.”

Hermione frowned, “But do you want to be on a team?”

“Course!” Draco said back, “I love quidditch. I just figure—well, anything to make Father less angry at me, you know?”

“What exactly has been going on with you and Mr. Malfoy, anyway?”

Draco sighed and sat his cutlery down on the table and glanced around before leaning in to the other three, “Look, Father sent me this letter the other day and I just—I needed time to figure out what to do about it.”

As he pulled out the letter from his father, Draco explained the events from today to his friends. Harry, Ron, and Hermione each passed around the letter from Lucy and each taking it in turn to display an appropriate amount of outrage over the letter. 

“This is rubbish,” Harry said as he threw the letter back to Draco, “Absolute rubbish. Did Uncle Sirius remind you that you’re always welcome at Potter Manner?”

“Yeah. And that’s why he gave me a mirror connected to all of yours. He said it would be a safe way to communicate if something like this happens again,” he took the mirror out of the pocket of his robes and held it up, “How does this work, exactly? How do you know if you’re being called, anyway?”

“Oh! It warms up in your pocket. It can be easy to miss. It’s pretty subtle. When you pull it out you can see the person trying to call you but they won’t see you until you’re facing the mirror. Dad said that’s to protect the user if they’re indisposed.”

“That’s some incredible magic!” Hermione exclaimed as she looked at the mirror, “Who made them?”

“Er—Uncle Sirius said he did, but Uncle Moony said that dad and Uncle Sirius came up with the idea and then he executed it. I guess mom did some charm work, too. Then to add another they do all the same spells and then link them with a variation of the er—I think it’s called a protean charm?”

“A protean charm? Really? Wow! That’s really advanced magic.”

“I suppose,” Harry said as he ate his dinner, “But Uncle Moony has always been able to do some powerful magic. So, anyway, does this mean you’re ignoring your dad, then, Draco?”

“I guess I am. Otherwise I have to be friends with those idiots Crabbe and Goyle. I suppose you lot are a little better than them,” Draco did his best to keep a straight face before he burst out laughing, “Oh my god, your faces! I’m just kidding. I mean, I don’t want to be friends with Crabbe and Goyle but still, you lot are way better than those two. I swear, Goyle is part troll.”

Ron snorted into his pudding and practically choked on the bite that was in his mouth. 

“What’s going to happen when your dad finds out, though?” Hermione asked, concern in her voice.

Draco’s smile fled his face as he grew more serious, “I’d rather not think about that if I’m honest. I’m sure it won’t be pleasant.” 

~ID~

Sirius stepped out of the elevator at the Ministry, he wanted to get in and out of the wretched place as quickly as he could. He’d waited long enough to handle Walburga’s estate but the extra time he waited didn’t mean he was looking forward to it now. 

He quickly strode through the atrium and punched the button at the lift. As he waited he bounced on the balls of his feet. Once the lift arrived, he quickly got in with the Ministry employees and made his way up to the magical law enforcement floor. 

As he reached the requisite floor, he found himself to be the only person left waiting. He watched as the golden grills slid open and revealed Lucius Malfoy who looked equally as shocked to see Sirius as Sirius was of seeing him. Once they had gotten over the initial shock, the pair glared daggers at one another. 

“Lucy. Erm—sorry, I mean, Lucius. Pleasure.” 

“Black,” Lucius spat, “I heard that you’ve been attempting to influence my son.”

Sirius shrugged and went to make his way past Lucius, attempted to push past him, but Lucius slapped his walking stick across the door to the lift, blocking him in.

“Perhaps I did not make my indignation clear. I have heard that you have been attempting to foster some sort of mudblood loving, blood traitor out of him.”

Sirius frowned and rolled his eyes upward some, “I wouldn’t call him a blood traitor…more of—him following in the family footsteps, if you know what I mean.” 

Lucius bared his teeth at Sirius in a grimace, “If I so much as catch wind of you speaking to my son again, I will personally make your life a living hell. You will personally discover the reach my power at the Ministry has—my power on the board of governors and the Wizengamot.”

“Are you done throwing a bitch fit, yet?” Sirius said as he crossed his arms, “Because I don’t think you quite understand how much I don’t care how deep into your pockets any of those organizations are. So, if you’ll excuse me, I have business to attend to before I can get back to my comfy bed at home.” 

Lucius smiled mischievously and once again blocked Sirius from leaving the lift, “No, I don’t think you would care. Well, that is until it effects your family that is. You see, as a governor of Hogwarts, I have substantial influence on things such as the curriculum, the disciplines, and who is able to remain within its walls be it professor or student,” Lucius intimated, “And as for the Wizengamot—oh, yes, you and Lord Potter have yet to claim your family seats so you wouldn’t be aware of the more recent bits of legislation that have come across to us in recent months. I am, of course, referring to the werewolf registry and the accessibility and affordability of the wolfsbane potion as well as certain restrictions involved.”

Sirius paled but continued, “Consider your message given, Malfoy. And, for the record, I don’t care too much about who you know or what you say you can do. Now, if you don’t mind, it’s time for me to make my leave.”

Sirius pushed passed Lucius and marched his way down the hall until he reached the wills and estates office of the department of magical law enforcement. He took a moment to cool down before he walked in and disposed of Walburga’s estate.

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	38. Chapter Thirty-Eight: Fluffy

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I hope you guys have all had an awesome week! We’ve been getting a lot of stuff done here. For example, my last name has (finally) legally changed! Yay! On top of that I’ve been working hard at bar prep and I’m pretty sure I might murder my prep course for allowing the property person to lecture. Not only does she constantly sing about property law (which, honestly, is just horrible) but she whistles when she makes the ‘S’ sound. It’s awful. 

Beer of the Week: This week I went basic bitch and had a white claw while I wrote this chapter. I worked on it outside and it was fuckin hot so I wanted something to cool off with. I know, I know, hard seltzer isn’t beer! It’s for people who have no taste in beer! Nah, I really like these hard seltzers. I finally tried the Bud brand and they’re pretty amazing. Their strawberry is to die for! If you want a good beer, beer suggestion, though, I’ll give y’all another PA brand to try—Zeroday Brewing has their summer seasonal out called Positive Vibes and it is absolutely refreshing! It’s an American Wheat Ale with a hint of grapefruit (for sweetness) and pink peppercorns (for a bit of tang) and it goes down soooo smoothly. Almost too smoothly if you know what I mean! So, if you ever get over to Harrisburg, consider dropping them a line for some amazing beer!

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: You reviewed so quickly I hadn’t even gotten into bed yet when I got the email! (I tend to get to bed right after my updates). I’m glad you loved the chapter—I can’t wait to have more Harry/McGonagall interactions. I agree that Lucy’s “pull” with the Ministry and Hogwarts is going to be an obstacle so I’m excited to see how you feel about where it goes! As to your questions, no spoilers here—but I definitely can’t WAIT to get to Umbitch. I’m so excited for those shenanigans. ProfessorMarauder: I like to think that McGonagall’s silence was Harry’s “punishment”. She knew she couldn’t let him get away without punishment, but she didn’t want to give him detention so, knowing Harry’s mind and his conclusion jumping, she figured that would be a good punishment for him. Nesciamema: James and Sirius have, honestly, just sort of forgotten to/didn’t want the burden of claiming their seats. Neither one of them are super into politics when they don’t need to be. However, I definitely think they can do some good if they were to finally take them. 

PunksterNL: “What do we want?!” “Beer!” “When do we want it??!” “Yesterday!” hell yeah! I always love meeting a fellow enthusiast! You know, I hadn’t really thought about that. I do agree that bloodism wasn’t punished by the staff at Hogwarts but I don’t think it was really “accepted” more so that staff weren’t around to hear the comments to discipline students and, if unreported, they wouldn’t be aware of it occurring. I’ll have to think about how to handle that in the future. As for this incident, no, he won’t be—there weren’t any professors around who heard the speech and Harry and Co. aren’t likely to tattle. I’m glad you’re enjoying my portrayal of Lucy! Guest: Thank you! And thanks for that tip—I’ll go fix the typo! I’m forever getting them mixed up. Winking Skeever: Ask and you shall receive. 

Potter671: Oh now I’m hooked—what is deadwood and did you enjoy your trip?! Now giving Ginny a mirror would be interesting….hmmmmm….all those lovely ideas….I’m glad you liked my use of Zabini, he’s such a blank character. I don’t want to make all of the Slytherins ‘evil’ so be on the look out for the friendlier ones I’m going to utilize! Thanks for the awesome review! Smallwjl: Hope everything is ok on your end! You went poof for a little again. Sending positive vibes! But, yes, I always thought of Lucy as a dog that’s all bark no bite—I think he’s going to mellow out as he realizes some of the more dire consequences of his actions but I’ve never been a huge fan of Lucius. 

Thank you everyone for the reviews! They really helped me out this week with everything going on in the world and in my life. I can’t wait to hear what you all think of this update. And, don’t worry, there will be more Hinny and more Remadora next chapter. Enjoy reading Ignoring Destiny and if you still haven’t, please check out my one shot of Harry’s little league quidditch game!

And a HUGE shout out to Midnitewanderer for the Nickname of “Lucy” for Lucius Malfoy! I’m now realizing I never gave them the official credit for that awesome name. So, thank you Midnitewanderer! 

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Fluffy

When the bell tolled signaling the end of class, Draco quickly packed up his books and supplies, already thinking about what he was going to eat for lunch. As he screwed the lid back onto his pot of ink, a hand laid itself on his desk and a voice spoke. 

“Malfoy. I’ve been meaning to have a word with you,” Zabini said as he leaned in closely to Draco, his voice silky and soft, “I’ve been made aware of your predicament and I wanted to see if I could lend you a hand—keep you in with the right sort of people.”

Draco looked up into Zabini’s dark brown eyes and shook his head, “Look, I know we were mates when we were young but now—I think we just want different things from life. And I heard about what you said to Hermione,” Draco added, his grey eyes darkening like a storm, “And if you think I could ever—”

“Now come on, Malfoy,” Zabini said smoothly, a toothy grin on his face, “you know I didn’t mean it that way. Besides, she’s a stupid, know-it-all, bitch, anyway. She’s not even that pretty—what do you want to be hanging around her for when you have ties, real relationships, with us?”

“Hermione is not a bitch,” Draco spat through clenched teeth, his hand balling into a fist, “By ‘us’ I assume you mean you, Crabbe, and Goyle? As if those two trolls have the ability to form relationships—they’re lucky they can tie their own shoe laces.”

Zabini cocked his head at Draco, his smile becoming more menacing, “Defending the mudblood, are you? Can’t say I’m surprised. Regardless, I’m still happy to help you tell the right sort; for old times sake.”

Draco looked into Zabini’s eyes as the last student made his way out of the room and replied, “I think I can tell the right sort myself, thanks.”

Draco made to move away from Zabini as he threw his bag over his shoulder as his mirror heated up in his pocket—Zabini simply stepped in front of him, blocking his path. Draco let out a deep sigh as his hand tightened on his bag strap, “In case you were incapable of reading social queues, I’m trying to head to lunch if you don’t mind.”

“No, I understood. This is me saying you’re not leaving yet. At least, not until I’ve said my piece,” Zabini glanced around the classroom, his dark eyes scanning for any indication of someone listening, “You need to watch yourself here at Hogwarts—who you talk to, who you associate with. We—a few of us in Slytherin who’s parents know your father, have been told to report back about your doings. We were always decent friends when we were young, I’d like to continue that. I don’t care who you decide to associate with but our families do. I can’t afford to disassociate with my family like you have. I wish things could be different.”

Draco was utterly confused now. Zabini had taken a complete 180 on him. He knew they had been somewhat close as children but they had grown apart over the years—they actually hadn’t spoken to one another in nearly three years now. “What are you going on about?”

Zabini tilted his head, “I’m trying to do you a favor. We were friends, Malfoy. Good friends. If it weren’t for the differences in which paths we can take we probably still would be.”

Draco looked away—of course he remembered all those days he spent with Zabini on the Malfoy estate. He wasn’t lying, the pair had been good friends. But that had been before his friendships with Harry, Ron, and Hermione and, if he were honest with himself, he had always questioned some of Zabini’s beliefs and statements. “Well, that was then and this is now. And, right now, I want lunch. So, message received, I’ll be on my way, thanks.”

Draco pushed passed Zabini, confusion still etched on his face as he made his way down to the great hall. However, he didn’t make it more than a few feet before he ran into a frantic looking Harry. 

“Draco!” Harry said as he caught sight of Draco with Zabini trailing close behind him, “We were getting worried. Is everything ok?”

Draco nodded as he looked back at Zabini, “Yeah. I was just leaving.”

Zabini gave Harry an evil grin, “So when do you catch the train back home, Potter? I expect you won’t be at Hogwarts much longer after your stunt at flying practice the other day.”

Harry’s eyes darkened as he looked at Zabini, “Braver now that you’re back on the ground, aren’t you, Zabini? As if you could take me on a broom.”

Zabini’s eyes flashed dangerously at Harry, “You wish. I could take you on my own any time. How about tonight? Wizard’s duel. Wands only—no contact.”

Harry hesitated before Draco spoke up, “Done. I’ll be his second, Ron will be his third. Who’s yours?”

Zabini frowned, “Crabbe and Goyle.”

“Those two idiots? Good luck with that,” Draco snorted. 

“Midnight. In the trophy room—it’s always unlocked and I have it on good authority that Filch will be patrolling the dungeons around that time,” and, without waiting for a response, Zabini’s cloak swung around as he turned on his heel and headed off in the opposite direction.

Harry and Draco watched him go, both utterly confused with what just occurred. Harry turned to Draco and said, hesitantly, “What in the world—?”

“I—I don’t know. Are we, are we actually going to go?”

“I mean, I’m not backing down. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”

Draco shook his head, “No, I’ll come. Honestly, how much magic do you know? You’d be shit in a duel.”

“I can do a shield charm,” Harry said nonchalantly.

“For real?” Draco asked, surprised.

Harry nodded, “Yeah. I learned how to do it a few years ago wandlessly. I figure if I can do it wandlessly I can do it better with my wand. I also learned the disarming charm.”

“I know the tickling jinx and the jelly-leg jinx. Does Ron know anything?”

“Nah I don’t think so. Not anything we haven’t learned in class, anyway.”

“We’ll figure it out. Lunch?”

“Yeah.”

The two of them began to head back down to the great hall for lunch, still discussing the events and how they were going to make it to the trophy room at midnight that night. It wasn’t until about half way there that something in his pocket grew hot against his leg and Draco remembered that he had missed a call while Zabini had him trapped in the classroom. He quickly glanced around before dashing into an unoccupied classroom and pulled out his mirror. 

He could see James’ face reflected back at him in the glass, a relieved look on his face once he caught sight of Draco.

“Draco, I was getting worried. This is the second time I tried to call you.”

“Yeah, sorry I didn’t answer. Zabini cornered me and I didn’t think I should pull out a magic mirror in front of him. Also, I wasn’t sure who to call back—this thing doesn’t tell me who I missed a call from.”

James frowned for a moment, “You know, I never thought of that. A voice mail system for the mirrors would be useful now that we have more than two linked together. I’ll talk to Remus about seeing if that might be possible. I’m sure he’ll have some clever idea. Sirius and I made one for Remus, too, by the way, so he has one even though he’s at Hogwarts with you two. That way you don’t have to try to sneak down to see him. I just finished talking to Harry and he had mentioned that you were late to lunch—we were both worried.”

“Zabini cornered me after class. He said he was trying to do me a favor and then went on and on about all the Slytherins keeping an eye on me for Father. Harry just came to find me, actually.”

“Hi dad!” Harry chimed in quickly before James could respond.

“I’m sorry, what? Lucy’s doing what now?” James asked, his mouth wide.

“Either paying or blackmailing the parents of some of the Slytherin house to keep an eye on me here at school to make sure I don’t keep up my relationship with Harry and everyone. I’ve been ignoring it since I talked to Sirius.”

“Yeah, about Sirius,” James started, his eyes darkening, “He had a run in with ol’ Lucy at the Ministry. We debated whether to tell you, but we thought you should be aware of what’s going on.”

Draco sat up, his face paling, “What did my father do now?”

Even though he couldn’t see James’ shoulders, Draco was sure he shrugged them, “Threats mostly—how he’s on the board of governors and can get Remus ousted from his job. Stuff about the legislation before the Wizengamot. Sirius and I are going to handle it, we’ve already worked that out.”

“Father must be backed into a corner,” Draco commented quietly.

“Why do you say that?”

Draco thought for a moment before replying, choosing his words carefully, “Father enjoys having his power, and he likes to flaunt it, but he doesn’t directly threaten people outside of the family unless he doesn’t think there’s any other way to get what he wants.”

“That’s good to know. Like I said, Sirius and I have a plan—just stay safe and keep your nose out of trouble.”

Draco rolled his eyes before smiling at James, “I will. I’m just headed to lunch now. Bye.”

James waived before the mirror went back to normal, reflecting Draco’s face back at him. 

~ID~

James put his mirror back into his pocket and looked up at the person entering the library. He gave Sirius a quick nod before picking up his research where he left off.

“Who was that?” Sirius asked as he took a sip of his soda.

James looked up, his eyes blurred from the transition of looking at a book to looking at reality, “Draco. I was on the mirror with Harry during his lunch break and he mentioned that Draco was late. I got worried.” 

“Is he ok? Why was he late?” Sirius’ hand shot to his pocket with the mirror half way out before James replied.

“He’s fine, Padfoot. He was on his way to lunch. One of his classmates stopped him on his way to give him a warning from good ol’ Lucy.” 

Sirius let out an audible sigh as he put the mirror back in his pocket, “We need to do something about him. He’s a fucking git but, he’s right, he has power and we don’t.”

James nodded, “Yeah, I kind of lied to Draco and told him we had a plan. We—we have a plan, right Pad?”

Sirius sat down as he shook his head, “I don’t know what. We’re not on the board of governors and I didn’t know that new werewolf legislation was up before the Wizengamot.”

“Well, what if we stopped the legislation going through?”

“How? Taking our family seats back?”

“I mean, yeah. I know neither of us really wanted to engage in politics much, it was always just talk, but maybe it’s time,” Sirius replied reluctantly.

“Do you know anything about this legislation he was talking about? Remus already had to register confidentially with the Ministry, how much worse could it get?”

“I’m worried about his access to the Wolfsbane potion. Lucy mentioned something about that. How do we go about taking our seats, anyway? Didn’t you take your seat during my trial?”

James shook his head, “Technically I sat in my family seat, yeah, but I never formally took my place in the Wizengamot. I just sat in the seat because it’s mine and it was your trial. Would we need to write our W.O.M.B.A.T.s?”

“Definitely not. Family seats don’t require us to write the exam.”

“Hold on, I think there’s a book in here about the history of the Wizengamot. I bet it would explain the process to us.”

James used the magical library system to search for the books about the Wizengamot while Sirius ran around collecting them. After an hour or so, Sirius’ head shot up and he exclaimed that he had found it.

“Finally!” James exclaimed, “What does it say?”

Sirius skimmed back over the passage he had been reading before summarizing, “Basically we need to make application to the Wizengamot that we intend to reclaim our family seats. In that application we need to provide evidence that we have the right of taking those seats—that we’re next up in the family line. And then the application gets approved by the Supreme Mugwump—Dumbledore—and we can take our seats the next session. It says here that sessions are held every other Wednesday evening. Think you can get off for the sessions?”

“The team will have to let me. We don’t normally have practices on Wednesdays so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem anyway.”

Sirius smiled mischievously, “Sounds like we’re writing some letters.”

~ID~

Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat up in the Gryffindor common room; Hermione had been trying to convince them both to not go to the trophy room that night. Ron, after hearing about the confrontation with Zabini, had immediately agreed to go with Harry to be his third. He was only upset about the fact that he wasn’t Harry’s second and that Draco had beat him to that honor. 

“Really,” Hermione continued, “Think of all the points you’ll lose Gryffindor and Ravenclaw if you’re caught! That’s incredibly selfish of all of you.” 

“Hermione,” Ron whined, “You just don’t understand. We can’t back down from this or else Zabini will always think he can stomp all over us. We can’t give in to that snake.”

Hermione frowned at Ron, “And how exactly do you intend to be able to make it down there undetected and meet up with Draco?”

Ron rolled his eyes, “We’ve already told you. We’re meeting Draco down on the sixth floor and then we’ll all go to the trophy room together. And now it’s half passed and we need to get going.” Harry and Ron made their way out of the portrait hole, Hermione following close behind them.

Hermione frowned, anger filling her brown eyes, “Don’t you care about Gryffindor? You seem to only care about yourselves! I don’t want Slytherin to win the House Cup again—you’ll lose all the points I got from Professor McGonagall for knowing about Switching Spells.”

Ron turned to Hermione and said, loudly, “Go away, Hermione. You don’t need to be a part of this!”

“Fine! When you two end up on the train home because you got expelled, I won’t feel bad for you!” Hermione turned back to the portrait hole only to realize too late that the Fat Lady had gone for a nighttime visit, locking the three of them out of the tower until she returned, “Oh no!”

“How are you getting back in?” Harry asked as he examined the portrait. 

“I’m not,” Hermione said sadly, “I guess I’m coming with you.”

“No you’re not!” Ron said angrily.

But neither one of them were able to continue their argument because at that moment they all heard a sound further down the corridor. They quickly and quietly made their way towards it only to find Neville on the floor. Neville explained to them how he had forgotten the password to get into the portrait and he ended up joining them as well. 

The four of them carefully made their way down to the sixth floor where they met up with Draco who was extremely confused as to how their party had nearly doubled but continued along with them regardless. It didn’t take them all long to get to the Trophy Room without being detected. Not once had they caught sight of Filch or Mrs. Norris. 

As they reached the Trophy Room, they noticed that Zabini, Crabbe, and Goyle weren’t there yet, but Harry, Ron, and Draco took out their wands just in case they leapt in on them. But then a noise in the next room made them jump—they heard Filch talking to Mrs. Norris, telling her to search for someone. They all quickly ran out the other door, Neville’s robes just barely making it around the corner. 

Filch came into the Trophy room and they could hear him muttering, “They’re in here somewhere.” 

“This way!” Harry mouthed to the others and, petrified, they began to creep down a long gallery full of suits of armor. As they moved, they could hear Filch getting closer before Neville’s fear got the better of him and he began to run, tripped, and then toppled into a suit of armor. 

The clanging and crashing of the armor alerted Filch to their approximate location and each of the 5 children knew that. Fearing being caught, they made a break for it. They broke out in a run down the gallery, never looking back, before swinging around the corner and down another hall where they ripped through a tapestry and found themselves in a hidden passageway. They hurtled along it and ended up near their charms classroom which was miles away from the Trophy Room. 

But they weren’t out of the woods yet. As they all bickered, trying to determine how to get back to their dormitories, they heard a door knob rattle and something large come bursting out of the classroom in front of them. Peeves the poltergeist caught sight of the five children and smiled with wicked glee.

Draco pointed his wand at Peeves, “Be quiet, Peeves, or you’ll regret it!”

Peeves cackled, “Wandering around at midnight, Ickle Firsties? Tut, tut, tut. Naughty, naughty, you’ll get caughy!” 

“Not if you don’t give us away!” Harry replied. 

“Should tell Filch, I should,” Peeves said in a saintly voice while his eyes gleamed wickedly, “It’s for your own good you know.”

Draco attempted to hit Peeves with a get of red light at the exact moment that Ron took a swipe at him. Irritated, Peeves shouted, “Students out of bed! Students out of bed in the Charms corridor!”

The race was back on. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Neville were once again running for their lives right to the end of the corridor where they slammed into a locked door. Draco, quick thinking, used the unlocking charm and pulled the door open, ushering everyone else behind it before slamming it shut again. Winded, they all stopped for a moment to catch their breath and listen at the door. They heard Filch and Peeves arguing in the hall as they hoped that Peeves wouldn’t give them away. In the end, he didn’t. Then, Neville began tugging on Harry’s robe. 

Harry turned to hell at Neville, but as he turned he caught sight of the monstrous, three-headed dog standing behind them in the otherwise empty room. It was then that Harry suddenly realized why this corridor was off limits. Harry groped for the door knob behind him before twisting it, causing the entire party to fall backward and into the corridor. They all stood up and slammed the door shut again before taking off. 

Each of them ran, they ran and didn’t stop until they had reached their appropriate dormitory and gotten through the door and into their common rooms. Once they had caught their breath, Harry pulled out his mirror and called for Draco who quickly appeared in the reflective surface. 

“What in the bloody—” Draco said as Ron cut him off.

“What do they think they’re doing, keeping a thing like that locked up in a school?” 

“Did any of you use your eyes?” Hermione asked to the generally confused group of boys, she sighed, “The thing was standing on something. I think it was a trapdoor!”

Harry frowned, “I mean, in my defense, I was busy looking at its heads, not its feet.”

Hermione rolled her eyes, “It’s clearly guarding something. But what?”

“Right now I don’t care what it is, we could have died!” Draco said loudly, “Did Zabini set us up?”

“Of course he did,” Harry said, his eyes flashing. 

“I don’t know what that was all about but I’m going up to bed,” Neville said as he made his way towards the dormitory stairs, “And I suggest you all do the same!” 

The four of them all made eye contact and silently agreed that that was the best course of action. They all agreed to meet up tomorrow morning before getting to work on their homework to discuss the events of that evening. 

This school year was certainly shaping up to be something other than ordinary. 

End Notes:

Thanks for reading Ignoring Destiny! And a HUGE shout out to Midnitewanderer for the Nickname of “Lucy” for Lucius Malfoy! I’m now realizing I never gave them the official credit for that awesome name. Please like, follow, and review!


	39. Chapter Thirty-Nine: Bugger That

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! Sorry this update is so late. This weekend was absolutely crazy. We ended up getting to go to our cousins’ wedding despite all of the restrictions in our area. I really thought they weren’t going to be able to have it so I hadn’t planned on going and, well, then I had to scramble because I’m terrible at planning for social things apparently. Mostly because so much family came into town and I needed to be hostess for everyone. I also had to do my first MBE practice exam (the multiple choice portion of the PA bar exam) and that was just—it was fucking insane. But I did pretty good for it! above the curve. Anyway, I hope the content of this chapter makes up for the lateness! 

Beer of the Week: Yuengling Octoberfest! This Marzen Lager is both smooth and malty. It has a nice roasted taste and the crispness of a traditional lager. It’s definitely worth picking up if you see it. 

To answer everyone’s question: the W.O.M.B.A.T. exams are the entrance exams for wizards who don’t have a seat on the Wizengamot but want one. It stands for Wizards’ Ordinary Magic and Basic Aptitude Test. Apparently muggles could also take this exam! Fun fact from Pottermore. 

Reviews: ProfessorMarauder: Caught that, did you? I thought it was a nice circle for Draco to take. I guess we’ll have to wait and see how James and Sirius can affect legislation, won’t we? Thanks for the recommendation! I’ll have to take a look at this story. I want to take the time to really think about what to do about the Lycanthrope. I don’t want a cure but I also want it to make sense since he has so many resources in my AU that he didn’t have in cannon. Midnitewanderer: I personally would withhold your judgments on Blaise yet as I haven’t fully decided on which way he’s going to end up since I have so many options! Right now he’s a bit of a prick though. I thought that giving Draco Harry’s line was a really nice circle for his character—I’m glad everyone liked it! It just felt right. YES. SHE WAS LITERALLY HERBERT! Plus the singing. You still deserve the shout out for giving me the idea though!

Potter671: Deadwood sounds pretty cool! And not too long after you commented about it it showed up as a city in Supernatural (I’m rewatching the series (again)). I’m glad you had a good time! I’m so excited to get to the stone, I have some awesome ideas! And I had no issues with your review being split in half, it gave me two emails to read instead of one! Smallwjl: This was honestly one of the best reviews I’ve ever had. It’s so kind that I’m just going to quote you because it just—wow. Thank you! “I'm not sure how you've managed to completely change the dynamic of the golden trio to include Draco (and Neville) but literally maintain there exact endearing qualities. Hermione would 100% still scold them, Harry would definitely still not back down, just all of the small quirks should feel forced but this feels so effortless and real.” PunksterNL: I hope I address your issues about Harry’s motivation in this chapter! I didn’t realize I had left that out. It was definitely necessary for plot purposes (fluffy and all that) but I do see your point. As for Hinny, ask and you shall receive! Thanks for the beer suggestion! Guest: Thanks I guess? Glad you liked the chapter.

Thanks everyone! Please enjoy this update! 

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Bugger That

Tonks wrung her hands together as she paced back and forth in her living room. Remus had invited her to come over to his suite at Hogwarts to finish up their translations this evening and she was worried that tonight would be her last chance to convince him to go on a date with her. 

She had had a crush on Remus for as long as she had known him—there was something about his brooding, quiet nature that intrigued her. And then when he got to talking on a subject he enjoyed and loved; she could listen to him all day when he goes on about hinkypunks. The way that his eyes lightened, like little pools of molten gold, just entranced her.

“Bugger,” She whispered harshly to herself as she paced. She balled a fist up and found herself nearly stomping her foot like some insolent teenager as she thought about Remus more and more. 

Soon she found her feet moving again as he body resumed its pacing. Angry now, she forced herself to move towards her bedroom so she could get dressed. As she stared in her closet she wondered what the best way to go about this would be—sexy and revealing or her normal self? She’s tried making him jealous before so she knew that wouldn’t work, but maybe enticing him might? She knew his self-restraint was strong, but she wasn’t sure how strong it would be against her. 

Tonks was aware that Remus was, at the very least, attracted to her because Sirius had dropped the dime on him the last time he visited her. She looked up in shock, a mischievous glint in her eye as a plan formed itself in her mind. 

She dashed back to her living room, barely throwing herself on the ground as she grabbed the floo powder. In her excitement, Tonks accidently knocked the pot onto the floor and the floo powder spilled everywhere—the green granules getting into her carpet. 

Tonks sighed as she waved her wand and repaired the pot and put the powder back into the pot. She was sure she missed a few specks and they would find their way into her shoes over the next few weeks. That shit can be worse than glitter sometimes. She sighed and threw some floo powder into the fireplace and poked her head in. 

She felt as if her head was spinning a million miles a minute as it traveled to her desired location. Once her head stopped spinning and the ash cleared, Tonks blinked a few times to orient herself. 

Tonks found herself looking out of the fireplace in the library at Potter Manor. From her position on the floor she could see Cirri dusting the books on the shelves.

“Hey, Cirri, could you get Sirius for me? Is he home?”

Cirri jumped in surprise and turned to look at the fireplace and smiled, “Ms. Tonks! It is nice to be seeing you again! Sirius is upstairs. I will go and get him for you.”

A few minutes later Sirius came bounding into the room with a knowing grin on his face, “Well hello favorite cousin. What brings you to call upon little old me?”

Tonks rolled her eyes, “I need—I can’t believe I’m saying this—I need your advice.”

Sirius let out a low whistle and sat down in front of the fire, “You need my advice? Oh, why Tonks, what do you need my advice for?”

“Because you’re the most serious person I know,” Tonks said sarcastically, “Because you know Remus well and I trust you.”

“What ever do you need to know about my Moony-Moo? Do you like him?”

“Of course I do you asshat. Now how do I convince him to get over whatever complex he’s got going on and give me a chance?”

Sirius shrugged, “I don’t think he’s ever going to get over his fur—his issues. He really thinks he has good reason for them. It’s always been a problem—he claims he doesn’t want to burden anyone with them.”

“You mean the fact that he’s a werewolf?”

Sirius looked down at Tonks in shock, “How do you—”

“Please, it’s not that well-kept of a secret. You think I didn’t notice that anytime I came over around or on the full moon he was ill or missing? Or that, during school, we had a substitute professor during the full moon? It wasn’t hard to put together. Especially when I studied werewolves in Defense Against the Dark Arts in Hogwarts and auror training.”

“Right. I always forget how smart you are. And that you had Remus as a professor in school. And you really don’t care?”

Tonks shook her head, “No. I know some people get weirded out about that kind of stuff but—I just don’t care. A disease doesn’t make the person and it doesn’t change how I feel. I’ve had a crush on him for ages now.”

Sirius gave Tonks a genuine and encouraging smile, “Ok, here’s what you need to do.”

~ID~

Later that evening Remus found himself once again pouring over his translations. He had this feeling that he was getting close to something important, but he wasn’t sure what. He had been doing immense amounts research into horcruxes ever since James’ last conversation with Dumbledore, specifically on how they’re said to function and how they’re used and destroyed. 

This most recent translation was originally written by a Romanian scholar in the dark arts who had created the first successful horcrux in Europe. It gave more extensive and intimate instructions on how to create and use a horcrux. Within the writing Remus had discovered a potion that could be used to give the wizard who made the horcrux their body back. It detailed a gruesome potion that required body parts from the wizard’s father, servant, and enemy as well as several other, rarer ingredients. 

Remus settled down on the squashy couch in his office, a hot mocha in his hand as he lifted the writings to continue his work. He took a long drink from his mug, savoring the sweet, white mocha and the creamy goodness that was his coffee. He felt the warmth of it radiating through his body, the caffeine rushing into his blood as he closed his eyes and relished the moment. It was times like these that reminded Remus why he loved his work so much—his research was not only important but he deeply enjoyed discovering what the mysterious writings depicted. 

Remus spent the majority of the evening on his sofa enjoying his mocha from the mug Harry had given him last Christmas. It was charmed to constantly refill with the liquid that was placed inside of it using a refilling charm as it got low. It was also charmed to keep the liquid at Remus’ preferred temperature so it was always the perfect sip. It was because he was so absorbed in his work that he was surprised by his fireplace lighting up and Tonks stumbling out. 

Remus pulled off his reading glasses and held them as he looked at Tonks’ figure straightening, the skin tight black pants and corset top she had on accentuating her curves and breasts. Remus swallowed hard has he caught sight of her dark purple hair tumbling in waves down her back, a tattoo of a quill running down the back of her neck and onto her shoulder. The quill was continuously and magically writing the same three words over and over, “I am me.” 

Tonks bent over, making sure that her ass was prominently displayed to Remus as she adjusted her knee high, black boots. She smiled when she heard him whisper behind her. 

“Nymphadora?” Remus breathed, “What are you—what are you doing here? And why—why are you dressed like that?”

Tonks looked back over her shoulder at Remus and smiled wickedly, “What do you mean, Remus? I just came to pick up our translations before going out to a muggle club.”

Remus’ eyes darkened at her words, a snarl nearly on his lips before he caught himself, “You’re going to a muggle club looking like that? And when exactly did you get a tattoo?”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean? I’ve had this tattoo since I was 16, if you must know.” Tonks asked angrily. 

“Six—but you’re only 18 now!” 

“I’m still failing to understand what the problem is.”

Remus’ eyes flashed a deep, dark gold as he took a moment to look at Tonks before standing up an snatching their work off of his desk and held it out to her, “Here, take it.”

Tonks took the papers from him, disappointment in her heart before another idea dawned on her, “Thank you,” she said as she tossed her hair over her bare shoulder, exposing the round tops of her succulent breasts, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m due to meet Derik at the club.”

“Who the hell is this Derik bloke?” Remus spat at Tonks.

“What do you care? He’s a muggle I met at the bar—we’re going out dancing.” 

“A mug—that you just—dancing?” Remus spluttered, “Nymphadora—”

“How many times have I told you. Don’t. Call me. Nymphadora.”  
Remus squared himself in front of Tonks, his eyes flashing darkly, “If I recall correctly, while you were my student you didn’t exactly give appropriate attention when I called you ‘Ms. Tonks.’ I’ll continue calling you Nymphadora, thanks.” 

Tonks looked into Remus’ golden eyes and felt herself quaking in her boots as she replied, a wicked grin on her face, “If you’ll excuse me, professor, I have a date at the club.”

Not knowing what compelled him, or why he at any point thought it was a good idea, Remus reached out a hand and grabbed Tonks by the upper arm, knowing he couldn’t let her leave. The image of Tonks meeting some handsome and mysterious stranger in a dark club enraged him, angering the wolf that was deep within him. He heard himself growl at the thought before he knew where the sound came from. 

As he growled he turned Tonks back towards him and looked into her eyes where he saw what he thought was perhaps fear. Then he caught the scent of her arousal as he flushed and all his blood drained to his groin. He realized too late how close Tonks’ waist was to his hip, noticing only when he saw the shock and deepening of arousal on her face. 

“Let go of my arm, Remus,” Tonks said, her voice deep and sultry as her darkened eyes bore into Remus’ golden ones. 

Remus looked down at his hand on Tonks’ arm and admired how her light skin looked so striking against his sun-kissed hand. His eyes traveled from her arm to her smooth, white breasts, mere inches away from his face, held up solely by the faux black corset she was wearing as a top. It was only when he felt the smoothness of her right arm under his hand that he realized he was holding her tightly, closer to him than he had ever allowed her to be. 

“Nymphadora,” Remus breathed. Tonks could smell the white chocolate on his breath from the coffee he had been drinking, “Why did you come here?” 

Her scent was becoming overwhelming, it was filling every part of him as they stood there, eyes locked together. He could see her eyes continuing to darken even as he felt himself hardening more at the idea of her being here, with him, at his mercy and not with the mysterious muggle, Derik. 

“I told you,” she breathed, “To pick up our work before going to the club.”

Remus ran a hand down her side, savoring the soft, creaminess of the small bit of her exposed midriff, “Dressed like this? Something tells me you had ulterior motifs.”

Tonks shuttered involuntarily at the feel of Remus’ warm, calloused hands running over her midriff, “This—this is what muggles wear when they go out dancing,” she said, almost pleading. 

“Dancing?” Remus asked as he bent down to sniff at her neck, his nose and lips running along her soft flesh. He felt her tense for a moment before she relaxed again, “I can take you dancing.”

Remus pressed his hips against her, nearly groaning at the pressure he felt. He could feel her trembling where she stood, she smelled amazing. He carefully, teasingly, ran his lips along where the base of her neck met her shoulders. He felt her breath hitch in her throat under his lips. 

“I bet you could,” Tonks gasped as she tried to pull away, “But I have a date.”

Remus pulled her closer again, his hand running down her back until it rested just above her ass, “Right, right. Can’t forget about what’s-his-name.”

“Who?” Tonks asked as she momentarily forgot what her cover for the outfit had been. She was desperately trying to remember the tips that Sirius had given her earlier that day, “Oh, right, the guy I’m bringing back to my place this evening.” 

Anger and jealousy flared up in Remus as he held Tonks roughly in his arms. She could feel him stiffen against her as he pulled her closer. If she wasn’t mistaken, she thought she could hear him growling deep in his throat. She looked up into his face and saw the desire there, making her stomach twist into knots as the excitement for what she hoped would happen next built within her. And the next thing she knew she felt his hands grip her tightly, pulling her in close by the waist and fisting in her hair as Remus drug Tonks’ mouth to his, finally giving in to everything he had told himself he wouldn’t. 

And Remus forgot; he forgot his reasons for keeping himself from her, that she was too young, that she shouldn’t have to deal with his lycanthrope. Everything slid away as he kissed her plump lips. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he registered that she tasted slightly of the strawberries she had had earlier that day. 

He couldn’t get enough of her. He had denied himself this pleasure so long he hadn’t realized how starving he was for her. Growling, he trailed his lips down her jaw and neck, licking and sucking on all of the soft, delicate skin he found there, drinking in her scent and flavor. 

He could hear her quiet moans as he licked her ear and growled, “Is this what you wanted? Was this your plan all along?”

Tonks’ breath hitched in her throat as she wound her fingers into Remus’ golden hair and drug his lips back to hers, sliding her tongue into his mouth. She felt his hand slide down to her hip and grip her tightly, digging his fingers into the thin fabric separating them from each other. She felt him harden against her when he realized she wasn’t wearing any knickers this evening. Tonks smiled against his lips as she felt him and pushed herself closer to him and pulled her lips away so that, when she spoke, they would lightly graze against Remus’, “That’s my little secret, isn’t it?”

Remus growled again and feasted on her neck as his hand ran back up her body to massage her breast. He could feel her nipple harden under the black, lacy fabric, “Tell me,” he demanded. 

Tonks gasped as she felt Remus begin to undo the ribbon holding her shirt together, “Make me.”

Remus growled and rushed his lips against Tonks’, his hands busy at work pulling at the ties of Tonks’ shirt. Tonks let out a primal groan as her corset opened and her breasts spilled into Remus’ waiting, callused hands. The feel of his rough hands rubbing against her soft flesh made her knees weak; she flung her arm around Remus’ neck to hold herself up as he bent down and took her nipple into his mouth. Remus sucked and licked her nipple, savoring Tonks’ exquisite flavor and her warmth. 

As he pleasured Tonks with his mouth, Remus slid his other hand down her bare back and between her legs, stroking the warmth he found there with his fingers. And when Tonks let out her loudest moan yet Remus thought he might burst. He looked back into her eyes, and growled, “Tell me.”

Remus watched Tonks’ face as he stroked her, the thin fabric between her legs growing wetter with each movement of his hand. He took pleasure in watching her facial expressions range from shock to pleasure to surprise as she attempted to respond to him. “Yes, it was,” she gasped as she waived her hand towards the office door. 

Remus heard a locking sound, internally thankful that Tonks had had the clarity and sense to lock the door and silence the room as he grabbed her wrist and threw her onto the couch. As he crawled over her, he snarled, “Of course it was. I should have known it would come to this. I can’t—I can’t keep resisting.”

Fisting his hand in her hair again, Remus pulled her back, exposing her neck to him so he could feast on her neck while she unbuttoned his shirt, baring his chest and running her hands along his naked torso. As she pushed his shirt off of him, Tonks pushed her hips towards his, pressing herself against him. He could feel how hot, how wet she was as he pushed himself against her. 

“Dora,” he growled, “I’m going to take your pants off and then I’m going to fuck you into next week. Tell me to stop.” 

Tonks pressed herself against him harder, arching her back as she cried, “Do it. I dare you!” 

She began working at the fastenings of his pants, attempting to tug them off of him. Remus simply gripped her wrists and moved them above her head before ripping her pants off. As she heard the tearing fabric, the excitement of the moment filled her belly. 

“Tell me to stop,” Remus repeated to her, almost begging her to make him stop. Tonks simply looked him in the eyes and smiled before leaning up to kiss him again, coaxing him onward. 

That’s when Remus completely gave in and plunged into her warmth. 

~ID~

Gin,

You won’t believe what we found here at school. Ok, so, I have to tell you the whole story. Hermione, Ron, Draco, Neville, and I went to the trophy room at midnight last night to have a duel with Zabini. Zabini is this ponce here at school who thinks he runs the joint just because of who his family is. Real full of himself if you ask me. And don’t ask me why I agreed to it because I don’t know. Something in me just couldn’t let him taunt me or make me feel like he could just—I don’t know. He was just acting so arrogant, you know? I just wanted to get a one up on him. After all those prank wars with my dads, I thought I could. 

Anyway, so we show up for this duel and Zabini is a no show and the school caretaker, Filch, shows up and we run. As we’re running we end up in the forbidden third floor corridor—inside is this huge dog with three heads! It’s guarding something, Gin, we just don’t know what or why. I mean, where do you even get one of these dogs? I wish you were here with us, you’d know what to do about all of this. 

WAIT. EVEN BETTER THAN THAT. I MADE THE GRYFFINDOR QUIDDITCH TEAM! All thanks to Zabini. It’s actually why we ended up going to the trophy room. He had stolen Neville’s Rememberall and I flew after him during flying class to get it. Anyway, Nana saw the whole thing and took me from class to meet the captain. I had my first practice the other night and it was brilliant. Dad, Uncle Remus, Uncle Padfoot, and Nana all pooled their money and got me a Nimbus 2000. It flies like a dream, Gin. When I come home for Christmas you can fly it if you want. I won’t tell Mrs. Weasley if you don’t!

How have things been at the Burrow since we last wrote? Mrs. Weasley leaving you alone at all? I’m going to write to dad to see if you guys can all come over Christmas day to celebrate. I’m sure he won’t mind having all of you. You’re basically family. 

Please write soon—I miss you. 

Love,

Harry

“Ginny!” Mrs. Weasley called from somewhere downstairs. 

Ginny rolled her eyes as she folded the letter from Harry back up and slid it into the box under her bed before headed downstairs, “Coming!” 

She made her way downstairs quickly, taking the turns at almost a swing as her hand slid down the railing. Ginny quickly made her way into the kitchen where she promptly squealed with delight at the sight of Charlie Weasley standing in the kitchen at the Burrow. Ginny dashed over and wrapped her arms and legs around Charlie as she started rambling on about how excited she was to see him. 

“Hey Ray! How you doing kiddo?” 

“Better now that you’re here! What are you doing back so soon? Mum said that you were super busy in Romania with the dragons.”

“I was but dad owled me about how sad you’ve been since everyone’s been out of the house so I thought I’d come for a visit to cheer you up. I thought I could take you to a muggle musical. The one in town is doing a pretty cool one about the French revolution. I’ve heard the music is amazing.”

“That would be awesome! I just have to send Harry a letter first, really quickly I promise!”

“Still talking to Harry, eh?” Charlie asked as he elbowed Ginny in the ribs. 

Ginny blushed, “Yeah but we’re just friends, Charlie. I’m only ten, you know.” 

Charlie ruffled Ginny’s hair despite her protests and scooted her out the kitchen door, “Go write your love letter! I’ll be down here when you’re done!”

Ginny smiled and ran up to her room and quickly wrote her response letter back to Harry. 

Harry,

That’s absolutely crazy! And you have no idea what that thing is hiding? Charlie came to visit me today—I’ll see if he knows anything about huge, three headed dogs. I bet he does, Charlie knows everything about animals. 

You know I want to fly on your Nimbus! I heard it flies like a dream. Your dad has one, doesn’t he? I read in Quidditch Monthly that all of Portree got Nimbuses for the World Cup. I wish I could come see your first match—I bet it’s a good one. You’ll be amazing, Harry. 

I can’t write much because Charlie is waiting for me. He’s taking me to see a muggle musical about the French revolution! I’ll write again soon, I promise. I miss you guys so much and I can’t wait to see you at Christmas time. I’ll write later with anything I find out! 

Love,

Ginny

Ginny quickly rolled up her letter and attached it to Hedwig’s leg and sent her off before running back down to Charlie. 

Charlie and Ginny thoroughly enjoyed the musical they saw. Ginny found herself so deeply engrossed in the music that she hadn’t even realized how quickly the performance went. At the end of the show, she was still singing the Song of Angry Men. Charlie even bought her the cassette of the music from the show so she could listen to it at the Burrow. 

“So, who was your favorite character?”

“Well, I liked Cosette,” Ginny said as she thought out loud, “But I also really liked Jean Valjean.” 

“I kind of liked Éponine myself.”

Ginny laughed, “That’s because you thought she was fit.”

“I mean, she was attractive. I just thought she was the best character,” Charlie replied casually. 

“Hey Charlie,” Ginny started, ignoring his comment, “Have you ever heard of a creature that looks like a huge dog with three heads?”

Charlie looked taken aback and concerned as he replied, “Well, yeah. They’re rare, though. Why? How have you heard of them?”

Ginny shrugged, “I came across it in an old book. What do you know about them? Do people usually use them to guard things?”

“Er, well, it sounds like you’re describing a Cerberus. It’s a Greek animal; a dog with three heads. And, yeah, they’re traditionally used as guard animals because of how vicious they can be. There’s only about ten in the world but if you ever come across one of those you should turn tail and run the other way.”

“Right. It was in a book I read about Greek mythology, I think. It guarded a gateway, right?”

“That’s where it’s said the Cerberus comes from, but it’s just a myth like most creature origins that the muggles come up with.” 

Ginny made a mental note to herself to remember to send Harry another letter with that information. Surely he could look up Cerberus’ more thoroughly at Hogwarts with all those magical books in the library. 

Ginny and Charlie spent most of the rest of the evening together discussing anything and everything they could think of. Ginny got a reprieve from having to help Molly in the kitchen because Charlie took her out to dinner at the local Italian place she liked to go to. He knew it was her favorite restaurant and he liked to take her whenever he could. It had become their spot over the last three years that they had been having their Rey and Char dates. In fact, Ginny’s favorite picture of the two of them was from that restaurant. She had it framed on her wall next to a photo of her and Bill at a baseball game.

At the end of the night Ginny was sad to see Charlie go back to Romania but she knew it wouldn’t be for long. He had talked about seeing her again soon and Ginny just couldn’t wait. 

Before she went to bed she wrote about the night both in a second letter to Harry and in the journal that Bill had bought her for her 9th birthday. It helped her in the evening to reflect on everything that had happened during the day so she could sleep easier at night. And, as she rolled up the parchment she wrote for Harry and laid it on the end of her night table, Ginny was excited to let Harry know everything that had happened. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	40. Chapter Forty: Halloween

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I hope you all had an amazing week. We’ve been super busy here dealing with lots of stuff but I managed to get this chapter finished on time!! I hope you all enjoy. 

Beer of the Week: This week I drank Troegs Lucky Holler while writing and I was SUPER pleased with it! I’m not normally an IPA gal but this NE IPA had me going back for another drink. It was smooth with a creamy mouth-feel and notes of pineapple and passion fruit from the galaxy hops that the beer features. Honestly, I’m game for any beer that features galaxy—it’s such a crushable hop that goes well in any beer!

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: Hey, hey, hey, that was totally in his office. His office has a very comfortable couch for when he needs a quick nap. Of course, that couch does have other, more interesting uses! You’ll have to wait and see on the Remadora front though. I’ll get to that fallout soon. I 100% agree that Ginny would have a great relationship with all of her brothers and I fully intend on emphasizing that throughout my story. I’m glad you liked my tattoo idea; I thought it was very Tonks esc. Glad you loved that chapter so much! There will be more, I promise! ProfessorMarauder: I always wondered that myself. I think JK just didn’t want to go too much into detail about it because Fluffy never makes a reappearance. You’ll learn more about cerberus’ this chapter for sure! 

Potter671: Thank you!! I love when I’m able to put their letters into action. I’m having so much fun figuring out how to morph the Hinny relationship organically. Honestly, the Ginny portions of my chapters have been the most fun. She’s honestly one of my favorite characters and I think that JK and other fic writers seriously underestimate her. I read a story on this site about Ginny and Harry being tomb raiders that just gave this amazing depiction of her character. I think it was by Rryder810. I’m so glad that my story is that important to your week! It’s my husband’s first time watching SPN but it’s my 5th or 6th time. Still find new things to love about it. PunksterNL: I’m glad you enjoyed the chapter! I’ve never done a full-on smut writing session so I was definitely worried that it wouldn’t turn out as good as I had hoped it would. Your comment tells me it totally did!

Smallwjl: Oh Charlie DEFEINITELY found that out by doing some in person research, 100%. I’m super hype to start including him as a character, he’s one of my personal faves. I didn’t want to slow-burn Remadora for too long but if I introduced it too quickly it wouldn’t be believable. But trust me, I have plans. So many, mischievous plans! Young Coffee God: Yassss. I want a shower beer fridge in my bathroom one day. And a beer shelf. WinkingSkeever: Ask and you shall receive oh kind Skeever!

Thank you everyone for reviewing! I can’t wait to see what you all think of this update. Please remember to review!! Your reviews remind me that I’m not just writing for myself anymore, but all of you who follow my story!

Chapter Forty: Halloween

Zabini was surprised to see Harry and company still at school the next morning. Harry gave Zabini a bold look, hoping he managed to convene to Zabini that he should watch himself. As Harry and Draco discussed possible pranks to get back at Zabini throughout the next week, nothing they came up with seemed quite right as payback. 

At breakfast the next week, the group of friends’ attention was captivated by a long, thin parcel being carried by several owls during the morning mail delivery. As they watched the owls flying further into the Great Hall as each of them contemplated what could be in the package and who it might be for. 

They watched in surprise as the package landed in front of Harry, knocking over his goblet full of pumpkin juice in the process. It was at that moment that Harry realized what was inside of it. In his excitement he nearly tore open the wrappings before Hermione stopped him and held out the note attached to it. 

“Harry stop!” she whispered sharply, “The note says not to open it here. It’s from—McGonagall?” 

Harry furrowed his brow, “It’s not from my dad?” He reached out and took the note from Hermione and read it aloud quietly to Ron, Hermione, and Draco, “’Do not open the parcel at the table. It contains your new Nimbus Two Thousand, but I don’t want everyone knowing you’ve got a broom or they’ll all want one. Congratulations on getting onto the team—Oliver will meet you tonight at seven for your first training. Make me proud. Your favorite grandmother, Minnie. P.S. Don’t expect a Christmas or birthday present from me this year. This counts for both.’ Nana got it for me! She’s the best. She had to have spent a fortune on this!”

Harry looked up to the head table where he saw McGonagall deeply engrossed in conversation with Professor Dumbledore but he could have sworn he saw the hint of a smile on her face. Harry beamed and snatched up the parcel before standing up at the table, “I’ll see you three in class. I have to go talk to my dad.”

“Do you want me to go drop that off in our dormitory?” Ron said eyeing the package excitedly, “I don’t mind.”

“You’re going to let me go for a spin, right Harry?” Draco asked as he ran his hand over the packaging, “I remember taking a turn on your dad’s broom and it was awesome.”

“You took blondie to ride your dad’s broom but not me?” Ron asked incredulously.

Harry rolled his eyes, “I took Draco so he could get away from home. And dad could only bring two people to practice. You can both have a turn on this one, ok? I got to go though if I want to get ahold of him before class. But, yeah, Ron, if you could drop this off I’d owe you one. Thanks!” 

Ron quickly snatched up the broom and ran off towards the Gryffindor dormitory, leaving Draco looking slightly disappointed that the broom was gone. As Harry stood up to run out of the room, Draco grabbed his arm, “Hey, Harry?”

“What’s up?”

“Well—I signed up to try out for the Ravenclaw quidditch team. Try-outs are this weekend and I’m up for the seeker position. Do you think you could come out and train with me Friday night or Saturday morning?” 

“Yeah! Ron would probably come out, too, if you’d like.”

Draco rubbed the back of his neck, “Look, I love Ron, too. He’s one of my best friends. But—to be honest I’m really nervous about this try out and the less people trying to give me advice the better I think.”

“I can keep him busy for the day,” Hermione offered, “He can be quite overwhelming sometimes, I can understand needing to do something like this without him.”

Draco nodded and then turned back to Harry, his eyes pleading, “Can you help?”

Harry sighed and nodded, “Yeah, I’ll help you. Let’s meet on Friday ok?”

Draco nodded and Harry turned on his heel and headed out of the Hall and into an empty classroom off the Entry Hall. Once he was sure he was alone, Harry pulled out his mirror and called for his dad. After a few minutes James’ face appeared in the glass looking concerned. 

“Harry! Is everything ok? It’s still early”

“Yeah. Dad! Guess what Nana got me!” Harry quickly told James all about the events of this morning. In his excitement he stumbled over some of the words he was trying to say while James’ smile grew wider. 

“I was wondering when Minnie was going to send that to you. She had asked me whether I was going to get you a broom for quidditch. I had told her that I thought your old Clean Sweep would do fine for the school team but she wouldn’t hear of it. Make sure to thank her because she wouldn’t take any money from any of us.” 

“Next time I see her out of class I will. Draco said he’s trying out for the Ravenclaw team, too.”

“Is he? I haven’t talked to Draco in a few days. I’ve been getting worried about him since Sirius had the run-in with old Lucy at the Ministry.”

Just then the bell rang indicating the first classes of the day were beginning, “Hey dad, I’ll talk to you later. Class is starting and I’m going to be late.”

“Ok. Stay out of trouble.” 

Harry glanced away from the mirror before responding, “Yup, no problem! By dad!”

Harry quickly put the mirror back into his pocket and took off towards class. He wasn’t ready to tell James about his encounter with the three headed dog just yet. 

~ID~

James sighed and put his mirror away. He knew something was up with Harry but he wasn’t sure what it was or what was going on. He just hoped that Harry was keeping himself out of trouble. He looked up as he heard someone walking into his office and nodded at Sirius who was holding a few pieces of parchment in his hands. 

“We got letters back from Dumbledore accepting our requests to reclaim our family seats. He just needs my father’s death certificate before the next session. I’ve already sent it out his way. He did comment that he hadn’t heard about any werewolf legislation I had mentioned in my letter so that makes me feel a little better. I wonder if Lucy just made some shit up to scare us.” 

James thought about that for a moment before replying, “I mean, he definitely could have embellished. But I am concerned about his comments to the effect of revealing Remus to the board of governors. How does he know that Remus is a werewolf?”

“The registry?” Sirius asked, shrugging.

“He shouldn’t have access to the werewolf registry. It’s supposed to be kept by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and be kept private so that werewolves aren’t subjected to more prejudice just because they followed Ministry safety protocols.”

Sirius nodded, “That doesn’t mean he didn’t manage to get ahold of that information. Plus, he was a death eater during the war—he probably knew the wolf that turned Moony.”

“I just think he’s mostly talk. Lucy doesn’t have the balls to do anything too egregious to us or Moony. If he did, he wouldn’t have claimed Imperius and would be in Azkaban right now as a loyal Voldemort follower.”

“Anyway, the next meeting is Wednesday. Dumbledore said our robes will be ready and sent to us on Tuesday.”

“Perfect. Hey, you never told me what happened at the Ministry when you went to take care of Walburga’s will.”

Sirius ran his fingers through his thick, black hair and sighed, “Right. Uh, well, apparently everything goes to me.”

James sat back up stock straight, confusion written all over his face, “What do you mean it all goes to you? There was a mix up, right? Your parents disowned you.”

“Right. Apparently they didn’t change their wills after Reg passed away. They had taken me out of the will before and made Reg the full beneficiary but they didn’t change it to someone else after he died. And he was supposed to get everything so they didn’t list anyone to get the residue. So, the Ministry interpreted the will as if mum had died uh…what’s the word they used…intestate? As if they didn’t have a will. Which means—it’s all mine. Not that I want it. I mean, it’s a nice amount of gold and controlling shares in some companies we owned, but I also get Kreacher and Grimmauld Place. As if I want either of those. I haven’t gone to look at the house.”

“You really need to. You need to take inventory of everything in there and get it cleaned out. Your dad had so many dark objects in the house who knows what kind of state it’s in.”

“Yeah. I want to get out there this week and start looking into it. I was hoping that the family library had more information on Horcruxes or on Voldemort. Since my parents were super into the dark arts and Reg joined up, I’m wondering if we can find some useful information.”

“I didn’t even think about that. I bet we could talk Moony into going to check it out this weekend. We’ll have to have Kreacher tell us if there’s anything in the house that might help us in our search. He has to have a catalogue of everything. And we can bring Gus and Cirri to help clean everything out. They’d enjoy the work, I think. They get bored here sometimes.”

Sirius nodded, “Yeah. Moony was supposed to stop over around now—we can ask if he’s free Saturday to come check it out with us. I’m telling you now that I’m not looking forward to dealing with that portrait my mother put up of herself. She put a permanent sticking charm on that and I don’t think we’ll ever get it off. We’ll have to figure out how to deal with her bullshit.”

“We’ll figure it out. You said he was supposed to stop by soon? Where is he, then?”

Sirius shrugged, “Who knows. He was supposed to have a meeting with Tonks last week and I had been hoping to hear from him about it. it should be an interesting story.” 

“Why? What did you do?” James asked, exasperated. 

Sirius wiggled his eyebrows, “I didn’t do anything. I just gave my cousin some helpful advice to achieve a specified end result.”

“I really don’t like where this is going.”

Sirius wiggled his eyebrows again just as they heard someone making their way up the stairs, calling for them.

“We’re in the office!” James shouted. A moment later Remus strolled in through the office door looking exhausted and worn out. 

“Well, well, well,” Sirius said as he crossed his arms, “Look what the wolf dragged in.”

Remus shot Sirius a nasty look, “I’ve got a bone to pick with you.”

“I hope that you’re keeping that furry problem in check and you mean a metaphorical bone to pick.”

Remus growled at Sirius, “Of course I do. Then again, it’s so close to the full moon that I might not have. What were you playing at telling Dora to come to my office dressed like that? Now I have to clean up this mess and I don’t have time to deal with that.”

“I hope the mess isn’t too sticky.”

Remus snarled at Sirius again, “You know what I mean! Telling her how to dress and look and what to do to—to entice me I suppose? What are you playing at? She’s eighteen for gods sake, Sirius! I’m a monster.”

Sirius rolled his eyes, “You’re not a monster, Moony. She came to me for help in convincing you to act on your feelings. She knew you were attracted to her but she wasn’t sure how to convince you that the age gap doesn’t matter.”

“Even without the age gap there’s the entire other, glaring problem, of the wolf in the room! Aka, me! How is she going to feel when she finds that out? You’re setting both of us up for heart break.” 

“Oh come on, has she even said anything about a relationship?”

“No but I know women like Dora, she’s going to want one. She wants a marriage and kids.”

“You don’t know that. You haven’t even talked to her about it.”

“I’m sorry,” James interrupted, confusion written across his face, “Did I miss something here? What happened between Moony and Tonks?”

Remus’ face went red as he covered it with his hand and sighed, “Dora—Dora came by my office to pick up the documents we had been working on dressed—she looked quite provocative. And honestly, Padfoot I swear if you helped pick out her outfit I just—”

“Totally did. Glad you enjoyed my fashion sense!” 

Remus shuttered, “She showed up dressed like she’d just walked out of my fantasy dreams and started talking about this date she was supposed to have that night and I—I just got so jealous. And we—well, we uh, shagged. Three times throughout the night. And it was bloody brilliant but it can’t happen again.”

“You convinced Tonks to seduce Moony?” James asked and when Sirius nodded proudly, James clapped him on the back, “Good on you! That tension was ready to blow and I did not want to be the one in the middle of that.”

Remus looked back and forth from James to Sirius, shock and disbelief on his face, “You’re kidding me, right? You’re supporting him?”

“I think she’d be good for you, Moony. She’s smart and strong and as hard-headed as you are. She’s an auror; if there’s anyone out there who can handle your furry problem, it’s Tonks. Honestly, Lily would have approved of her and I definitely do.”

“What would her parents say? I’m definitely not the kind of man they envisioned for her.”

Sirius snorted, “Dromeda loves you and Ted would be happy as long as Tonks is happy. Please, that’s the weakest excuse you’ve had yet as to why you shouldn’t date Tonks. You’re just afraid of the fact that she’s perfect for you in every way.”

“Whether she’s perfect for me is neither here nor there. It’s whether I’m good for her that’s at issue. I would ruin her life. What would happen to her career if anyone found out that she was sleeping with a werewolf? She would become a social pariah. And that’s not even considering the fact that she’s a former student. What kind of implications would that raise if we decided to start a relationship only a year after she finished school? The rumors alone—I can’t do that to her.”

“So don’t go public right away. Have you talked to Tonks about all of this or have you just been ignoring her for a week?” 

Remus didn’t answer Sirius but, rather, continued to look pointedly away from his friends and shoved his hands into his pockets. 

James and Sirius exchanged a concerned look before James piped up, “Maybe we should ask Tonks what she has to say about all of this?”

“No!” Remus shouted at him, holding his hands up, before clearing his throat, “I mean, no, let’s not just yet. I need time to figure out what happened between us before I talk to her again.”

“You can’t just leave her hanging,” Sirius said, “I mean, I’m normally the kind of person to love em’ and leave em’ but even I know that for someone like Tonks you just don’t do that.”

“I’m just not ready. I’ll talk to her before the end of the weekend, ok?”

James and Sirius sighed, they weren’t going to get anything better out of Remus today, “Before you head out, James and I are going to head to Grimmauld Place on Saturday to do some inventorying of items and to see if the family library has any information on Horcruxes that might be useful. Want to come with us?”

“Oh, uh, sure. What time?”

“How about around 8?” 

“Yeah, 8 sounds good. I’ll see you guys then.” 

~ID~

Harry was spending a relaxing break out by the Black Lake with Draco, Hermione, and Ron later that next day on what could possibly be one of the last warm afternoons of the year. Harry leaned back against the oak tree they were all under and laid his book in his lap so he could watch the water gently rippling in the soft, autumn breeze. The sun was just beginning to set, throwing everything the group could see into a soft, orange glow as several leaves continued to fall onto the ground. 

As he watched the water, Harry could hear Draco and Ron playing chess beside him. Ron had always been exceptionally good at chess, having learned to play from all of his older brothers, but Draco proved to be a strong opponent despite rarely beating Ron at the game. The pair enjoyed playing and giving each other harmless banter back and forth. Hermione, thought extremely intelligent, was determined to be absolutely horrible at chess and, instead of playing, chose to watch the game and be a referee of sorts. 

It was a quiet afternoon, the kind that Harry knew he would remember for years to come as he watched his three best friends in the dying light. It was then that he was briefly interrupted by the hoot of an owl that had landed next to him. He smiled as he saw Hedwig’s white feathers. He gently stroked her as she stuck out her leg, a small scroll was attached to her. 

“What’cha got for me, girl?” Harry asked as he untied the letter. He quickly dug around in his bag and found a muffin he had kept after breakfast, intending for it to be a small snack earlier that afternoon, but he had forgotten about it. he broke the muffin apart and laid it on the ground for Hedwig. She looked at it disdainfully before she began nibbling on it, surprising herself with how delicious it was. 

Harry carefully unfurled the parchment and was excited to find that the letter was from Ginny. He had been hoping she would respond to him more quickly than she did, but he also knew that when Charlie comes to visit, she drops everything else around her. He was certainly one of her favorite brothers. 

Hermione had looked up at the sound of the owl hooting and saw Harry opening the letter, “Who’s it from?”

“Ginny,” Harry replied, smiling.

Ron frowned, the tips of his ears going red, “Why are you owling my sister?”

“Because she’s my friend and she’s lonely at your house all by herself and your parents. Maybe you should send her a letter too. I bet she’d appreciate it.”

Ron frowned and looked away while mumbling, “Well, I just didn’t think of it. We’ve only been gone a few weeks.”

“I’m just yanking your wand, Ron. She’s been getting a ton of letters from everyone. She knows you’re just getting settled into school and you’ll owl her eventually. She’s not upset. Plus, Charlie visited her the other day and probably spoiled her more rotten than she already is.” 

Draco snorted, “Yeah, like the princess of mayhem really needs to be spoiled more.”

Harry rolled his eyes, “I mean, she’s crafty but is she really the princess of mayhem?”

“Sorry,” Draco corrected, “The queen of mayhem. What’s wrong, Potter? Got yourself a crush?”

Harry frowned, “Of course not. Ginny’s like my sister. She’s Ron’s sister. That would be super weird.”

Draco shrugged, “Whatever you say. So what does the Weaslette want?” 

“Hey! Don’t call my sister that, Malfoy!” 

“She calls herself that, dumbass,” Draco said as he rolled his eyes and lightly punched Ron in the arm while laughing. 

“What did Gin have to say?” Ron asked as he rubbed his shoulder. 

Harry finished unrolling the letter as he read it aloud.

Harry,

I talked to Charlie like I said I would and let me tell you, he was a wealth of information. He swears he did this research in some books at Hogwarts but I have a sneaking suspicion that he’s handled one of those dogs you wrote to me about. He said that it’s a Cerberus. They’re a specific kind of hellhound from Greece. Ancient wizards used to capture Cerberus’ and train them to be guardians of temples, vaults, and valuables. Charlie said that he’s come across the bones of Cerberus’ during his tomb raiding in Egypt which shows that they were used even outside of Greece. The Cerberus often has three heads. He didn’t have much more to say on the subject but I bet you could find more information at the library at school. Charlie said that the library there has books on everything. But knowing that Cerberus’ were used to guard treasures, I wouldn’t be surprised if Hermione’s speculation is correct and this one is guarding something hiding under that trap door he was standing on. 

The musical Charlie took me to was so exciting! The music was amazing and Charlie got me a cassette of it so that I can listen to it whenever I like. We had a good time out and went to our favorite restaurant. I’ve missed him. I hope he comes home more often now that he’s settled into work in Egypt. Bill says he’s going to visit me soon, too, but I miss you and the others at Hogwarts just as much. You guys are coming home for Christmas, right? 

Write back soon. I hope you find out more information!

All my love,

Ginny

“You wrote to Ginny about that dog?” Hermione asked.

“Well, yeah. I write to Ginny about everything.”

Draco started making kissing sounds from behind Hermione; Harry picked up a book and threw it at him. Draco managed to duck just in time and laughed. 

“Why don’t we head to the library tomorrow to do some research on Cerberus’. I had no idea that they were a real type of magical creature!” Hermione said excitedly. You could see the light in her eyes at the idea of doing research into a weird, specific area of magic. 

“Gringotts uses both dragons and cerberus’ to guard the older and larger vaults,” Draco said casually.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared at Draco for a moment before Ron piped up, “How do you know that?”

Draco frowned, “One of each guards the Malfoy family vaults. I figured everyone in the wizarding world knew that.”

“That’s horrible!” Hermione commented, the shock clear in her voice, “How can they use creatures like that? Forcing them underground like that!” 

Draco frowned, “What do you mean? That’s just—that’s how it’s always been done. The Potter vault has a dragon guarding it, doesn’t it?”

Harry nodded, “Yeah but I’ve never seen it. Dad normally gets money from the family vault and when we went before Hogwarts we stopped at my personal vault because mum had left me money for school in it.” 

Hermione scowled, “It’s just horrible.” 

Draco shrugged, “I’m not a fan but there isn’t anything we can do about it right now. Maybe some day one of us can petition the Ministry to change it, but that’s years from now. So do we want to do research tomorrow, then? I’m good to do it during our free period or after classes.”

Everyone agreed to meet tomorrow to do more research. 

~ID~

Over the next week the gang had done extensive research in cerberus’. They learned that, while they were a subsect of hellhound, they were not imbibed with the demonic energy that traditional hellhounds were and, therefore, they can be less dangerous and more dog-like. They also learned that Charlie had been correct in his statement that they were used to guard valuable objects. They also learned that cerberus’ were extremely rare, especially in Brittan, and they were a class B non-tradable creature. How Hogwarts had obtained one was a huge blank in their research. 

They also learned that each head works independent of the others and they will often fight over food if only one chunk is tossed to them and that music will lull them to sleep. Any music will do, but they traditionally prefer a slow waltz. 

It was hard for the four of them to believe that they had already been at Hogwarts for two months yet so much had happened to them. They had carefully logged their research on cerberus’ into a slot in Harry’s trunk, unsure of how they would use that research in the future. 

They were all excited for Halloween. They had heard of the awesome feast that they would have later that evening and were excitedly anticipating it throughout their classes that day. The Gryffindors queued up for Charms in the early afternoon buzzing with excitement over the prospect of finally having the opportunity to make objects fly. Flitwick had told them last class that they were all going to get to practice the levitation charm, Wingardium Leviosa, during class that day and everyone was discussing their techniques. The trio could hear a Hufflepuff boy, Zacharias Smith, bragging about how he had already accomplished the charm the other night while practicing for class. He had several of the other Hufflepuffs hanging off his every word as he gave them tips on accomplishing the spell work. As he spoke, Hermione audibly scoffed at his incorrect information and rolled her eyes. 

Smith looked up at the sound and shot Hermione a nasty look, “Got a problem, Granger? Worried I’ll be better than you at working this spell? I’m happy to give you some tips or maybe even a private lesson if you were interested,” He added suggestively. 

Ron mimed barfing into his school bag as Hermione retorted, “I wouldn’t want any of those tips you’re giving everyone else. You’re going to accidently blow something up during class if you flick your wand too far to the left like you suggested.”

Smith’s face contorted in anger as he opened his mouth to fire back at Hermione when the door to the classroom flew open and Flitwick ushered them all inside. 

“Come in, students, come in!” Flitwick squeaked as he ushered the students through the doorway and into their seats. 

Class went as usual and, of course, Hermione managed to make her feather fly first. She managed to assist Ron and Harry in working the spell and both boys succeeded in flying their feathers around the room. Smith, on the other hand, sat sourly in his corner seat glaring at Hermione throughout the entire lesson. 

As the bell tolled for the end of class, the trio gathered their items and began walking out of class. They happened to end up behind Smith who was talking loudly and occasionally glancing back behind him. 

“No wonder no one besides the school weirdos likes her,” Smith said loudly as he peered over his shoulder at Hermione, “She’s a nightmare, honestly,” he quickly and accurately mimicked Hermione jumping out of her seat to answer a question in class. 

Without looking at Harry or Ron, Hermione promptly burst into tears and pushed passed Smith and dashed down the hall as Ron’s face grew red with anger. 

“Hey! Smith!” Ron shouted, his hands balling into fists, “What are you playing at you fucking ponce!” 

Smith turned around mid-laugh to look at Ron, an air of arrogance on his face, “What’s your problem, Weasley? Did I upset your girlfriend?”

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Ron mumbled, “What are you playing at making fun of her like that? Just because she called you out on your bull?”

Smith shrugged and turned on his heel, laughing, and headed down the corridor, away from Ron. 

Harry, also seething but levelheaded, grabbed Ron by the robes to prevent him from chasing after Smith and landing himself in detention, “Calm down, Ron. Let’s go find Hermione. I think she ran off this direction.”

Ron nodded roughly and turned and walked towards where Hermione had run off to. 

They found her about ten minutes later hiding in a girls lavatory, crying. Once they were sure it was clear of girls, they made their way into the bathroom to comfort her. Harry also quickly called Draco on his mirror, telling him where they were and what happened. 

Draco showed up a few minutes later, bursting into the room guns blazing and anger in his stormy eyes, “Hermione, are you ok? Harry told me—” 

Draco ended his sentence short when he caught sight of Ron holding a crying Hermione on the bathroom floor, Harry awkwardly standing near the sinks, unsure of what to do. Draco felt a tug at his heart, a wave of something that he couldn’t quite place falling over him as he watched the scene. As Ron looked up at Draco, anger in his blue eyes, he nodded and knelt down next to the couple and simply held Hermione’s hand while she cried. 

They spent the remainder of the afternoon in the bathroom, missing the beginning of the Halloween feast entirely as the boys worked to get Hermione out of her funk. They had finally convinced her that, no, no one had over heard Smith and, even if they did, everyone knew he was a jerk and they wouldn’t take what he said seriously, when they heard a noise outside of the bathroom. It was a loud, dragging and banging sound just outside of the door. None of them could quite place the sound, but each of their minds immediately jumped to the cerberus they had seen so very close to this bathroom. 

They all sat quietly and waited. Everything was quiet. For a moment. Then the door to the bathroom opened slowly and a large, ugly, smelly thing walked through the door. It was so tall it almost had to stoop in the bathroom to make its way in and the stench was so overwhelming that they all covered their noses almost immediately upon its entry. Their eyes widened in fear as they caught sight of the large, heavy club that the thing was dragging behind it. Then, Hermione gasped.

“It’s a mountain troll,” she whispered to the boys, “We need to get out of here before it sees us!” 

They stood stock still, unsure of how to handle the situation. Then, Harry nudged each of them and tried to sneak all of them out of the bathroom while the troll was busy looking at itself in the mirror. But they wouldn’t get that lucky. 

As they reached the door the troll caught sight of them in the mirror and turned, roaring in anger at being spied upon. It raised its large club and swung it down at them, catching the toilet stalls and tearing them off the wall with a loud bang!

Hermione screamed and jumped out of the way, pulling Draco, who’s hand she was holding as they tried to make their way out a moment before, with her. They huddled under the sink closest to them as they watched Harry and Ron standing in front of the troll. Then, the troll turned toward Hermione and Draco. 

“No!” Ron said as he looked around the room. He quickly picked up a chunk of toilet and threw it at the troll’s head as he shouted, “Oy! Pea brain!” 

Harry, eyes wide, looked at Draco and Hermione as he shouted, “Run!” 

Hermione nodded and tried to make her way toward the door before the troll brought his club down again. Then Harry took a running leap and jumped onto the troll’s back and, only having his wand in his hand, stuck it up the troll’s nose. Draco, seeing the opportunity before him, grabbed hold of his wand and used it to create ropes that entangled themselves around the troll’s legs, immobilizing it, just as Ron caused its club to levitate and then fall onto its head with a loud ‘crack!’

The troll fell with a resounding thud onto the ground. It lay there for a few seconds before Hermione came out from under the sink, fear in her eyes as she looked at her friends standing around the unconscious troll. 

“Is it—dead?” Hermione asked the boys.

“I don’t think so,” Draco said as he prodded it with his toe, “Just unconscious.”

Hermione nodded as she looked at the troll, her eyes wide. Harry pulled his wand out of the troll’s nose, muttering about troll bogies as he wiped it off on his robes. Just then they heard running footsteps coming toward the bathroom and they realized the din they had caused in their fight. Then McGonagall came running around the corner followed by Snape and Quirrell. Quirrell took one look at the scene before him and promptly fainted, falling back onto the floor next to the troll. 

McGonagall looked at Quirrell and rolled her eyes, exasperated, before turning back to Harry and company, her lips thin and white, her eyes wide, “What on earth were you thinking of?” she asked, cold fury and fear in her voice as she pulled Harry in for a tight hug, “This in no way means you’re getting off scott free, Mr. Potter.”

“Please, professor, we didn’t know there was a troll in the school. See, we missed the feast because I had been home sick and Harry, Ron, and Draco were trying to cheer me up. We ran in here when we saw the troll coming and it attacked us! Harry, Ron, and Draco were able to knock him out. Please, we didn’t know,” Hermione pleaded with McGonagall. 

“You’re lucky you weren’t killed. In that case—I suppose we owe Gryffindor 5 points for each Mr. Weasley and Mr. Potter and Ravenclaw 5 points for Mr. Malfoy. Now go, before I change my mind. The feast is being finished in your respective common rooms.” 

They hurried out of the bathroom and didn’t speak until they were several floors above the bathroom housing the troll. As they reached their point of separation, they all nodded to one another and headed off to their common rooms, agreeing to meet tomorrow for breakfast. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny. Please like, follow, and review!


	41. Chapter Forty-One: Is Snape or Is?

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! Thank you all so much for being so understanding! I felt so bad that I wasn’t going to get this chapter completed yesterday that I felt I owed you all some notice as to why I hadn’t updated yet. Just to make sure you guys didn’t think I had forgotten about you! I’m feeling MUCH better today. My nose is just stuffy at this point and my throat is dry from the medication, but I should be 100% by the weekend. Which brings me to my next topic:

There will not be an update this weekend! Please be on the lookout for one around Monday or Tuesday!

I have my bachelorette party this weekend and, because I have no idea how fucked up I’ll get, I don’t want to promise you guys an update and not be able to deliver. But I’ll let you all live vicariously through me because it’s going to be a Harry Potter bachelorette to go with my Harry Potter wedding!!! 

I know, I know, we’re already married, what’s going on? I’m sure you’re confused. We haven’t had our actual wedding yet—we signed the legal stuff to save money on my degree and bar license. We had also hoped to share an insurance plan when we got jobs but—well—that hasn’t worked out well, has it?

Beer of the week: This week’s beer of the week is…A CIDER! I’ve seen a few people comment that they wished I did ciders so I decided to do one this week! So, this week I had Woodchuck raspberry cider and it’s amazing. It’s one of my favorites and I can’t get it here in my region in PA—I have to drive all the way to Maryland to get some. But! My best friend brought some the last time she visited and I was so hype! This cider is sweet with a natural raspberry flavor that isn’t over powering. It’s slightly tart to balance out the sweetness of the fruit sugar and has a lovely aftertaste and smell. 

Reviews: ProfessorMarauder: I personally don’t feel that Hermione lied here—she just didn’t tell the whole truth. I believe that she was probably so shocked by the events that she forgot all about Smith. Thank you for the understanding for the late chapter! Midnitewanderer: I’m not a huge Cho fan and I honestly haven’t decided if I’m even going to include her in my story as anything more than a background character/Diggory’s girlfriend. As for Remadora—trust me, my plans will be very satisfying on that end! But give Harry a break, he has to follow guy code, right? And as for Romione/Dramione—Ron was always better at helping Hermione feel better when he wasn’t the cause of her being upset. I felt this was a good chance to show that. Also thank you for the kind words about me being ill! I ate a lot of soup and garlic and I’m already on the mend. Dark Ash 7: A fair warning, this will be a Romione story. As for their fluff, I always believed that Ron was the best at comforting Hermione—when he wasn’t the cause of her distress anyway—and this was a good opportunity for that character development. 

Potter671: The story is “Harry Potter: Treasure Hunter” by Ryder10. Fair warning, it’s not finished but it’s still amazing. I’m glad you’re enjoying my portrayal of Ginny! I think a lot of fics don’t do her character justice and I really want to empower her. I’m so excited to get to COS. He really enjoyed everything through the Leviathans but now we’re into the word of god season which, if we’re honest, wasn’t the best one. PunksterNL: Honestly, in my head Hermione was so shocked by the troll and everything that she completely forgot about Smith. I want to address bullying and such in my story but it probably won’t be until COS. I’m glad you’re enjoying how I’m developing character! But I do hate to break it to you that Harry probably won’t realize his interest in Ginny for a while yet. I don’t think Harry will be a bumbling, stuttering mess, but I don’t think he’s going to be a Sirius Black, either! But I do believe Hinny will happen well before 6th year. Smallwjl: Ah yes, one of his two major character flaws. As if I couldn’t not include it! You’ll have to see! I’m going to bring the horcruxes up again in a few chapters so keep an eye out!

Boothbonesrule: I post once a week. This week was a tad late due to me being sick. Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the rest! Moneliza73: This is definitely going to be a Romione story in the end but that doesn’t mean that Draco won’t have any kind of crush on Hermione. I firmly believe that they would have gotten along well, maybe even dated a bit, if he hadn’t been such an asshole in the book. But, in the end, she’s going to be with Ron. Lt. ShovelHead: Ahhh I’m sorry to hear you’re stuck in quarantine! You must be going nuts stuck inside. I’m glad my story helped brighten that for you! Thank you for the wonderful review!

Posting schedule: Once a week.

Thank you for reading! Please make sure to leave a review! 

Chapter Forty-One: Is Snape or Is?

Sirius stepped into the living room wearing his new purple robes as he waited for James. He had to admit, he hadn’t been thrilled to join the Wizengamot but their robes looked amazing on him. The purple went with his pale completion and made his dark hair stand out and a purple gleam in his grey eyes pop. He thought he looked down right sexy, if he had to say so himself. And he did have to say so himself. 

James and Sirius were about to be on their way to their first Wizengamot session since their formal induction into the group. Apparently up today were some discussions involving Hogwarts and a new piece of legislation. Neither of them had heard any tale involving new werewolf regulations, making them firmly believe that Lucy had been overexaggerating the extent of his reach into their lives. 

Sirius turned as he heard James’ loping steps coming down the stairs. He smiled at his friend who, he thought, looked just as good in his new robes as Sirius did. 

“I didn’t think you’d be ready so soon,” James said as he ran his fingers through his hair in a futile attempt to flatten it, “I figured you’d take another twenty minutes trying to turn your ugly mug into something presentable.”

Sirius punched James lightly on the arm as James let out a roar of laughter, “You git. You know I don’t have to do anything to look as handsome as I do every day. You, on the other hand, well, I hear the muggles have an operation to make you look nicer permanently. Maybe you should look into that.”

“Bugger off. Come on, we’ll be late.”

The two men quickly made their way to the fireplace and flood to the Ministry. Because it was already after five in the evening, they found it to be relatively empty inside. They quickly made their way down the lift and to the room where the Wizengamot meets. It was quickly filling up with other members. 

James and Sirius quickly took their seats—they were lucky to have ones next to each other. To James’ other side was Augusta Longbottom who had taken over the family seat when her husband had passed since her son, Frank, is incapacitated. To Sirius’ other side was Florian Greengrass, another member who’s seat was claimed due to familiar relations. 

As the meeting began, Sirius and James exchanged a nervous glance, unsure of what the evening would bring.

“Good evening,” Dumbledore called to the crowd, “I would like to call this meeting of the Wizengamot to order. As a first bit of business I would like to welcome Lords Sirius Black and James Potter to the Wizengamot. The have elected to claim their family seats as the heads of their families. Welcome, Lords Black and Potter!” 

There was a general round of applause as Dumbledore smiled from his place at the front of the group. Once it had quieted back down, he continued, “Now, I would like to get right to business. As we only have a few issues to address today I’m hoping we may all get to call this an early night. I’m sure none of you would be too upset if that was the case.”

There was a general murmur of agreement among the Wizengamot members.

“Wonderful. Our first bit of business involves the proposed legislation from the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office limiting Wizard access to muggle fireworks. Apparently there have been several issues involving wizards placing spells on muggle fireworks causing them to blow up in the faces of muggles, severely injuring and confusing them. 

“So far the Muggle Liaison Office has managed to mask these explosions as letter bombs but with the increase in occurrences it becomes necessary to limit wizarding contact with these devices. 

“Mr. Arthur Weasley asked me to remind those voting this evening that we wizards do have access to wizarding fireworks, so this limitation will not cause any negative implications for law abiding witches and wizards.”

Over the next hour Dumbledore read aloud the proposed law, verbatim, to the Wizengamot. Occasionally, members asked questions or asked for clarification regarding verbiage or implications and the such. Eventually the Wizengamot voted their approval of the legislation after altering some of the specific language in certain parts. Generally, everyone seemed happy with the new regulations and potential punishments for violations. 

“Next on our agenda is a small discussion regarding approval for the classes that will be held at Hogwarts next school year. I know for some of you it may seem soon as your children have only been at school for two short months, but I assure you the approval is necessary for us to plan the school budget accordingly and have it approved by the board of governors. 

“The professors at Hogwarts have been contemplating adding a new, higher level course option for sixth- and seventh-year students. We would like to offer something that offers some sort of challenge for the students magically. One professor has suggested an independent study program to prepare them for their chosen post-Hogwarts profession. I personally like this idea. We could implement restrictions and assign every student a supervising professor based on their chosen project. Such projects could even include shadowing someone in their profession or even interning in a department. 

“I’ll open the floor to general opinions on the subject before putting it to a vote.”

Lucius Malfoy stood up to take the floor, “Albus, I think I’m failing to understand how this would offer a challenge or anything educational for students. What sort of projects would these students complete?”

Dumbledore smiled, “Well, as an example we have previously had students who have gone on to be curse breakers for Gringotts. These students have had the opportunity to work with Professor Lupin, our Ancient Runes professor, translating difficult runic texts and documents as well as learning how to preserve them. This opportunity proved both challenging for the student and foundational for their profession.”

Lucius nodded and sat down just as Augusta stood up and asked, “How will the professors make sure that students are staying safe? For example, what if a student chooses to work on creating new potions or spells—how will the professors be able to monitor their progress in a safe capacity?”

Questions such as these went back and forth over the next hour as the Wizengamot contemplated the new, optional class idea. In the end, the group agreed to allow the class to go forward for the next year, as an elective, on a trial basis for seventh years only before adjourning for the evening. 

Though James and Sirius didn’t do much participating during their first session, they learned a great deal about how the Wizengamot works and how to accomplish their goals in the future. 

~ID~

Harry’s first quidditch match of the season was quickly approaching. He felt like he was spending all of his free time practicing for the event but that didn’t seem to ease his stomach when he thought about it. Even though he had played in matches before for his little league team, they didn’t seem quite the same or as daunting as his first match on the house team. 

Ron had begun spending his free time helping Harry and Draco practice for their upcoming matches but there wasn’t much he could do to help them prepare. Often he would simply chuck golf balls for them to chase after and catch. Other times he refereed for them as the two played against each other while searching for the snitch. As good as Draco was at playing quidditch, Harry seemed to beat him more often than not. 

Despite all of this practice, Harry was feeling extremely nervous for his upcoming match. To mitigate this, when he wasn’t practicing, he was reading Quidditch Through The Ages. Hermione had suggested the book to him and he was happy to say that reading it really did help him take his mind off the match. Draco had even grabbed a copy from the library as well and both boys spent a good deal of time talking about the book with one another and, occasionally, Ron. 

Hermione had been helping Harry and Draco, too. She had helped them figure out times when they could do their homework and was helping them review their essays. Draco, of course, didn’t need much of Hermione’s help, but he appreciated the glance over all the same. 

It wasn’t long before Harry was faced with his first match the next day and the nerves in his stomach had yet to settle. He and his friends were sitting out in the courtyard around a jam jar containing a bright blue flame that Hermione had conjured up for the group to keep warm when they noticed Snape liming around the yard. The group drew closer to the jar to block the fire from view as he approached.  
“What’s that you’ve got there, Potter?”

Harry showed him the book and was extremely upset when it was snatched from his hands, “Library books are not to be taken outside the school. Five points from Gryffindor.” 

“What was that about?” Draco asked once Snape had limped from view, “And what was wrong with his leg?”

Harry shrugged, “Snape hates me because he and my dad had it out for each other when they were at school when they were kids. He’s always a jerk to me. I don’t know what was up with his leg, though. Odd.”

Draco frowned, “I’ve never known Professor Snape to be so mean to a student. He’s good friends with my father and he’s always been kind to me.”

“Lucky you,” Harry said darkly as he turned back towards the fire.

“Still nervous about your first match?” Ron asked.

“A bit. You, Draco?”

Draco shrugged, “Not really. We’ll win or we’ll lose. Father has already told me he refuses to come. Mother might, though. Is Mr. Potter coming tomorrow?”

Harry nodded, “Yeah and Uncle Padfoot. They’re both really proud that I made the team. Youngest seeker in a century since my birthday is later than yours.”

“Only by a few months,” Draco said, rolling his eyes.

“I wouldn’t worry too much, Harry,” Hermione said, encouragingly, “With how well your father plays we know it’s in your blood.”

Later that evening Harry found himself sitting in the noisy common room with nothing to occupy his time. He had already finished his charms homework and he didn’t feel like starting on potions. He set about looking around the room hoping that something would pop up to occupy his mind but nothing interesting was happening tonight. Ron and Hermione were working on Ron’s charms homework; Fred and George were bent over some old-looking parchment at a table in the corner; and the other members of Harry’s team were sitting with different groups of friends that he didn’t recognize—he didn’t want to bother them. 

He found himself wishing that he had his book back, knowing that it would take his mind off of his nerves about tomorrow. 

“Hey guys,” Harry said to Ron and Hermione, “I’m going to see if Snape is in the staffroom and ask if he’ll give my book back now.”

“It’s your funeral,” Ron said, socked.

Harry shrugged, “I don’t think he’ll say no if other teachers are around. Plus, if nana is in the staffroom she might intimidate him into giving it back if he tries to refuse.”

“That’s on you,” Hermione replied as they turned back to Ron’s assignment. 

Harry made his way quickly through the castle until he reached the staffroom. He stood in front of the door, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet as he waited for a moment, wondering if this was really such a good idea. Then he sighed and rapped his fist against the door and waited. 

Nothing happened.

He knocked again, louder this time, but no one opened the door. Harry wondered if Snape had just left the book in the office—he carefully pushed the door open, hoping that no professors were inside, and peeked inside. 

His eyes were assaulted with the sight of Snapes bloody, mangled leg on display for Filch who was wrapping it in bandages. Harry could see the blood oozing down his leg and a large chunk of flesh hanging off of the bone, the muscle raw and red. 

Harry’s eyes widened in fright as he listened.

“Blasted thing! How are you supposed to keep your eyes on all three heads at once?” Snape spat at Filch.

Three heads? Harry wondered if Snape had tried to cross that cerberus on the third floor they had found the other month. Harry was sure those dogs could do the extensive damage that was done to Snape’s leg easily. And after having seen how the cerberus reacted to people coming into its room he wouldn’t be surprised if it attacked unprovoked, either.

As Harry was contemplating these events, Snape’s head shot up, his black eyes staring at the door for a single heartbeat, “Potter!” 

Harry watched as Snape tried to hide his leg not no avail as Harry paled, “I just wondered if I could have my book back.”

“Get out! Out!”

Turning on his heel, Harry sprinted away before Snape could try to take away more points from Gryffindor or give him a detention. By the time he got back to Gryffindor tower, he was breathless and sweaty. 

“Treacle Tart,” Harry said breathlessly to the Fat Lady as he bent over double, clutching a stitch in his chest.

The portrait swung open and Harry stumbled over the threshold and to the chair he had previously occupied. He breathed for a few minutes as Ron and Hermione asked him what happened and why he was so out of breath. Once he was breathing properly again, he quickly regaled them with what he had witnessed. 

“You know what this means?” Harry asked, “He tried to get passed that cerberus on the third floor at Halloween! I bet he let that troll in so he could sneak past without raising a suspicion.”

Hermione’s eyes were wide as she looked at Harry, “He wouldn’t! I know he’s not very nice but he’s still a teacher. He wouldn’t try to steal anything that Dumbledore is trying to keep safe.”

“Honestly, Hermione, I wouldn’t put it past that git. You just think that all professors are perfect or something.”

Something dawned on Harry as they were discussing the events of the evening and he quickly pulled out his mirror and called Draco. Once he appeared in the glass, Harry quickly filled him in on what had happened.

Draco frowned as he took everything in before he replied, “I don’t know, Harry. I’m with Hermione. Snape is a teacher—I don’t think he would do anything to jeopardize that. From what I remember when he would talk with my dad is that Snape is loyal to Dumbledore to a fault. If anything, he may have been trying to add more protection to whatever’s there.”

“I guess we’ll find out. I’m going to try to keep an eye on Snape if I can. I don’t trust him.”

“Good on you,” Ron replied, “I don’t either. He’s a git.”

Draco and Hermione roared in disagreement with Ron and they all argued over whether it was appropriate to call a professor a git. In the end, the consensus was that, yes, you could call a professor a git, but only if they really were one. 

~ID~

Harry woke the next morning with knots in his stomach and worry in his heart as he thought about the match that was happening later that day. He found himself unable to eat any breakfast; he was worried if he tried to eat it wouldn’t stay down. Both Hermione and Draco tried to convince him to eat but his stomach couldn’t be swayed. Not even Seamus’ weekly, accidental explosions could shake him out of his funk.

Most of the school had discovered that Harry was the new Gryffindor seeker weeks ago and many of them had mixed feelings. Many of the Gryffindors didn’t believe that he was as good as Wood argued he was. Most of the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs speculated that he had made the team simply because of his and his father’s fame. Wherever he went that morning he was met with an onslaught of harsh whispers from what seemed like everyone at Hogwarts. The few positive comments he received did uplift him to some degree but not nearly enough. 

Overwhelmed, Harry stepped off into an empty classroom and pulled out his mirror, calling for his dad. James’ face quickly appeared in the mirror, confusion on his face.

“Harry! I would have thought you’d be down in the changing rooms by now. Is everything ok?”

“Yeah,” Harry said slowly, “Yeah. Just—just nervous is all.”

“For your match?”

Harry nodded.

“Oh! Well, why are you nervous? You’re going to do great and you’ve played in quidditch matches before. What makes this one so different that you’re nervous?”

“Well, it’s my first one on the house team and people have been talking about me all week. I guess most of the school found out that I’m the new seeker and a lot of other students think it’s a load of rubbish. Wood keeps telling me to ignore them because they don’t know what they’re talking about but I feel like I need to prove something to everyone.”

“Prove—Harry, you don’t have to prove anything to anyone. If you weren’t the best for the team you wouldn’t be on it. Clearly Minnie saw something in you that the team needed and Wood agreed or they wouldn’t have let you join up. It sounds like those people questioning your abilities are jealous or don’t know you well enough. You’re going to be fantastic today and I can’t wait to see it! I just wish your mum were here for you, too.”

“Dad! I do have a mum coming. My Uncle Moomy!” 

James roared with laughter at Harry’s play on words for several long minutes. He actually laughed so hard that it seemed he dropped the mirror onto the floor and Sirius picked it up, confusion and concern on his face.

“Harry, what happened to Jamie?” 

“I made a really bad joke. I guess dad thought it was funny.”

“What was the joke?”

“Dad said that he was sorry that my mum wasn’t going to be at my game today and I told him that of course I have a mum coming, I have an Uncle Moomy coming!” 

Sirius attempted to control his laughter, closing his mouth tightly as tears began streaming down his face and his chest convulsed as he gasped for breath. It didn’t take long for him to devolve into a full-blown laughing fit just in time for James to finish his and carefully pry the mirror out of Sirius’ hand. 

“You, kid, should consider stand up comedy instead of a professional quidditch player someday.”

Harry shrugged, “Eh, sounds like work. I have to go, though, it’s time to start getting ready for the match. You guys will be here soon, right?”

“Yeah. We’re flooing to Moony’s office shortly.”

Harry nodded in acknowledgement and said his goodbyes to his dad and uncle. He was feeling slightly better about the fast-approaching match against Slytherin. 

~ID~

By the time the Gryffindor team were changing into robes all the stands around the pitch had filled to the brim with cheering and chattering fans. In the locker room, Wood made what Harry would realize is his regularly scheduled speech to the team. Harry realized that this was a regular occurrence based on the fact that Fred and George were mimicking Wood and finishing his sentences. This, of course, made Harry snort into his robes as Wood glared at the twins before ushering them all out and onto the pitch. 

The team walked onto the field to a roar of cheers, applause, and boos from all around the stadium. Harry smiled up at his friends who he saw had made a large banner for him. He thought it looked spectacular. 

The two teams made their way to the center of the field and mounted their brooms as the two captains shook hands. Madam Hooch was there waiting for them.

“Now, I want a nice fair game, all of you!” she said to all of the players. She waited a beat before giving her whistle a loud blast and all fifteen brooms rose quickly into the air. They were off. 

“And the quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor—what an excellent chaser that girl is, and rather attractive, too—” 

“Jordan!”

“Sorry, Professor!” 

Harry realized that Lee Jordan was doing the commentary for the match as he began quickly circling the pitch, scanning the air for the golden snitch. 

“And she’s really belting along up there, a neat pass to Alicia Spinnet, a good find of Oliver Wood’s, last year only a reserve—back to Jonson and—no, the Slytherins have taken the quaffle. Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint against the quaffle and off he goes—Flint flying like an eagle up there—he’s going to sc—no, the Gryffindor’s take the quaffle—that’s chaser Katie Bell of Gryffindor there, nice dive around Flint, off up the field and—ouch!—that must have hurt, hit in the back of the head by a bludger—quaffle taken by the Slytherins—that’s Adrian Pucey speeding off toward the goalposts-, but he’s blocked by a second bludger—sent is way by Fred or George Weasley, can’t tell which—nice play by the Gryffindor beater, anyway, and Johnson back in possession of the quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes—she’s really flying—dodges a speeding bludger—the goalposts are ahead—come on, now, Angelina—keeper Bletchley dives—misses—Gryffindor scores!”

Gryffindor and a mix of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw cheers filled the cold air, with howls and moans from the Slytherins and their supporters. 

In the stands, an overly large, bearded man was making his way past the student spectators and towards where Ron, Hermione, Draco, James, Sirius, and Remus were sitting together, “Budge up there, move along.” 

“Hagrid!”

The six of them squeezed together to give Hagrid enough room to join them. 

“’Bin watchin’ from me hut,” said Hagrid, patting a large pair of omnioculors around his neck, “But it isn’t the same as bein’ in the crowd. No sigh of the snitch yet, eh?”

“Nope,” said Ron, “Harry hasn’t had much to do yet.”

“It’s still early yet,” Draco added, “It’ll turn up.”

“He’s kept outta trouble, though, that’s somethin’,” said Hagrid as he raised his omnioculors and peered skyward at the speck that was Harry.

“I think he’s doing brilliantly,” James said as his chest puffed out with pride. Sirius simply smacked his chest and deflated it with a roar of laughter.

Way above them, Harry was gliding over the game, squinting about for some sign of the snitch. This was part of his and Wood’s game plan. Wood had wanted Harry to stay out of the way until he saw the snitch so he didn’t attract the attention of the Slytherin Beaters. Wood didn’t want Harry to be attacked any sooner than he needed to be and putting him into the middle of the action would give the beaters and chasers a target they didn’t need to offer them. 

When Angelina had scored, Harry had done a couple of loop-the-loops to let off his feelings. Now he was back to staring around for the snitch. Once he caught sight of a flash of gold, but it was just a reflection from one of the twins’ watches, and once a bludger decided to come pelting his way, more like a cannonball than anything, but Harry dodged it and Fred came chasing after it.

“All right there, Harry?” he has time to yell as he beat the bludger furiously toward Marcus Flint.

“Slytherin in possession,” Lee said, “Chaser Pucey ducks two bludgers, two Weasleys, and chaser Bell, and speeds toward the—wait a moment—was that the snitch?”

A murmur ran through the crowd as Adrian Pucey dropped the quaffle, too busy looking over his shoulder at the flash of gold that had passed his left ear. 

Harry saw it. in a great rush of excitement he dived downward after the streak of gold. Slytherin seeker Terence Higgs had seen it, too. Neck and neck they hurtled toward the Snitch—all the chasers seemed to have forgotten what they were supposed to be doing as they hung in midair to watch. 

Harry was faster than Higgs—he could see the little round ball, wings fluttering, darting up ahead—he put on an extra spurt of speed—

Wham! A roar of rage echoed from the Gryffindors below—Marcus Flint had blocked Harry on purpose, and Harry’s broom had spun off course, Harry holding on for dear life. 

The Gryffindors were given a penalty show due to Flint’s blatant cheating while Harry tried to get back into the right headspace. It was as Harry dodged another bludger that it happened. His broom gave a sudden, frightening lurch. For a split second, he thought he was going to fall. He gripped the broom tightly with both his hands and knees. He’d never felt anything like that. 

It happened again. It was as though the broom was trying to buck him off. But Nimbus Two Thousands didn’t suddenly decide to buck their riders off. Harry tried to turn back toward the Gryffindor goalposts—he had half a mind to ask Wood to call a time-out—when he realized that his broom was completely out of control. He couldn’t turn it or direct it at all. It was zigzagging through the air, and every now and then making violent swishing movements that almost unseated him. 

Lee was still commentating. 

The Slytherins were cheering and no one seemed to have noticed that Harry’s broom was behaving strangely. It was carrying him slowly higher, away from the game, jerking and twitching as it went. 

“Dunno what Harry thinks he’s doing,” Hagrid mumbled as he stared through his omnioculors, If I didn’ know better, I’d say he’d lost control of his broom…but he can’t have…”

“What?” James snapped, panic in his voice as he directed his omnioculors towards the flying speck that was Harry, “What’s he—what is his broom doing? Remus—what’s happening to him?”

Remus squinted his eyes up at the speck before snatching James’ omnioculors and peering through them, his face paling as he watched the broom twitch and jerk, flying higher and higher. 

Suddenly, people were pointing up at Harry all over the stands. His movements had become more violent and pronounced now. His broom had started to roll over and over, with him only just managing to hold on. Then the whole crowd gasped, James calling out, as Harry’s broom gave a wild jerk and he swung off of it. he was now dangling from it, holding on with one hand. 

“Harry!” the three marauders shouted as they nearly leapt from the stands and onto the pitch several stories below. 

James, paler than a ghost, dashed off, down the stairs, intending to find a broom and fly up to Harry and, hopefully, catch him before he fell. It was clear to James that something was wrong with the broom, Harry would never fly so dangerously at such a great height. 

Sirius stood, frozen in his tracks, as he watched Harry dangling in the sky, his heart full of the fear he had felt ten years ago when he ran into the cottage at Godric’s Hollow. Fear for his Godson’s life heavy on his heart and mind.

“Did something happen to it when Flint blocked him?” Seamus whispered.

“Can’t have,” Remus replied, “A jinx that powerful—no child could have performed that magic, not on a broom as protected as a Nimbus Two Thousand. Someone else must have done it.”

Remus immediately began scanning the crowd for anyone that could have placed a jinx on Harry’s broom, his eyes failing to find anyone. Hermione’s eyes, however, were sharper and less blinded by beliefs and prior notions as she caught sight of Snape in the middle of the stands, his eyes fixated on Harry as he muttered under his breath nonstop. 

“Snape! Look!” Hermione declared as she looked through the omnioculors. 

Remus frowned and looked at Snape, too, “It certainly looks suspicious. But I trust Severus. He’s probably trying to work a counter-jinx on the broom. We can’t be so sure, Hermione.”

“But, Professor—” 

“Keep searching.”

Ron and Draco pulled Hermione back as Ron whispered, “What should we do?”

“Leave it to me,” Hermione said back, “Keep them distracted.”

Ron and Draco nodded, determination in their eyes. 

As Draco pointed out another person staring at Harry, Hermione snuck away from the group and raced down the stairs. 

The crowd watched in horror as Harry’s broom began reacting more and more violently to any advances to attempt to rescue him. Both Fred and George had already flown up and attempted to help Harry onto one of their brooms to no avail. James had also made an appearance on a broom and tried the same. But every time one of them flew close enough his broom jumped higher still. Undeterred, the three of them decided to circle below Harry as James twirled his wand in the air, slowing the speed of the air within their circle in case Harry fell. 

Hermione had fought her way across to the stand where snape stood and was now racing along the row behind him; she didn’t even stop to say sorry as she knocked Professor Quirrell headfirst into the row in front. Reaching Snape, she crouched down, pulled out her wand, and whispered a few, well-chosen words. Bright blue flames shot from her wand onto the hem of Snape’s robes. 

It took perhaps thirty seconds for Snape to realize that he was on fire. A sudden yelp told her she had done her job. Scooping the fire off him into a little jar in her pocket, she scrambled back along the row—Snape would never know what had happened. 

Remus caught sight of the commotion in the teacher’s stand and watched as several professors looked away from the match as something he couldn’t see happened that caused such a distraction. He frowned and looked around for Hermione and was instantly displeased to notice her disappearance. 

As he looked back up at Harry, he saw that Harry was now suddenly able to clamber back onto his broom. Remus was shocked that this new control over the broom occurred only after the commotion Hermione had caused. He wasn’t sure that the group of first years were right in their belief that Snape was hexing Harry’s broom, but he wasn’t sure they were wrong, either. Certainly Harry was only able to get back on the broom and regain control after that outburst and so many teachers were distracted. Clearly, one of them was the culprit. 

Harry was speeding toward the ground when the crowd saw him clap his hand to his mouth as though he was about to be sick, James speeding after him through the air. Harry landed on all fours, coughed, and something gold fell into his hand. 

“I’ve got the snitch!” he shouted, waiving it over his head as he turned towards James, excitement alight on his face. 

After making sure that Harry was definitely ok, James made his way back over to Remus and Sirius who got him up to speed on what had happened in the stands, sharing in their speculations as to what happened. 

“I don’t know,” Remus said, “It just seems so coincidental that Harry suddenly regained control only after Hermione distracted the professors in the stands.”

“Which professors looked away from the game?” James asked.

“Uh, Severus, obviously, Quirrell, Minnie, Flitwick, Sinistra, Burbage, Kettleburn, and a few of the school governors.”

“So it might not have been Snape?”

“It could have been,” Sirius said darkly, “I never trusted that greasy haired git.”

“Sirius, please. We’re older than our petty disagreements. The question I keep coming back to is why does someone want to kill Harry?”

“He’s an asshole—that’s not a petty disagreement! I wouldn’t put it past him to try to kill Harry out of—I don’t know, spite or something.” Sirius argued.

“It won’t be a mystery for long,” James said darkly, “Whoever it is better enjoy what’s left of their life for nearly killing my son.”

Remus and Sirius looked at James, concern and fear in their eyes. They had never seen their friend this angry in their life—the look in his eye screamed that he was out for blood. 

~ID~

Across the quidditch pitch, Hermione, Draco, and Ron waited for Harry outside of the changing room before they all made their way across the vegetable patch and to Hagrid’s hut for a cup of strong tea. 

“It was Snape,” Ron was explaining, “We all saw him. He was cursing your broomstick! He wouldn’t take his eyes off of you.”

“It certainly seemed incriminating,” Draco added, “But I’m not convinced. There were other people that looked away from Harry when Hermione caused her distraction. Remus could be right—maybe Snape was trying to do a counter-curse on Harry’s broom and one of the other people in that stand was the one jinxing him? We can’t know for sure.”

“I think Draco’s right,” Hagrid said, gruffly, “Why would Snape do somethin’ like that?”

The four of them looked at one another, wondering what to tell him. Harry decided on the truth. 

“I found out something about him. He tried to get past that cerberus in the third floor corridor on Halloween. It bit him. We think he was trying to steal whatever is behind it.”

“You three think that,” Draco corrected, “I think there may be some other explanation. I think you’re jumping to conclusions.”

“How do you know about Fluffy?” Hagrid said as he dropped his teapot.

“Fluffy?” the four of them said, socked.

“Yeah—he’s mind—bought him off a Greek chappie I met in a pub las’ year—I lent him to Dumbledore to guard the—”

“Yes?” Harry said eagerly, his eyes alight with excitement. The other three were on the edges of their chairs as the watched Hagrid with rapped attention. 

“Now, don’t ask me anymore, that’s top secret that is.”

“But Snape is trying to steal it.”

“Rubbish, Snape’s a Hogwarts teacher, he’d do nothin’ of the sort.”

“So why did he just try and kill Harry?” cried Ron.

“We don’t know for sure that he did,” Draco reminded Ron, “It could have been anyone in that stand.”

Ron rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, fed up with Draco for the moment. 

“I don’t know why Harry’s broom acted like that, but Snape wouldn’ try an’ kill a student! Now, listen to me, all four of yeh—yer meddlin’ in things that don’ concern yeh. It’s dangerous. You forget that dog an’ you forget what it’s guardin’, that’s between Professor Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel—”

“So someone called Nicolas Flamel is involved!” Harry shouted triumphantly.

Hagrid shook his head as Draco looked off into the distance and mumbled to himself, “Why does that name sound so familiar?”

“It shouldn’t and it doesn’t! Now, that’s enough out of all four of yeh. Off to the castle with the lot of yeh, go!” Hagrid said as he unceremoniously showed them the door and shut it in their faces. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	42. Chapter Forty-Two: Confrontations

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! Thank you all for understanding the lack of update last week. I had a wonderful time at my bachelorette and only died a little on the inside from overindulging. The decorations were AMAZING. My friends went all out on this and really made it special for me. Hell, my bridesmaid even put “Entrance to the Ministry of Magic” on the fucking toilet seat! It was just so magical. And we found out that we will 100% be able to go forward with the wedding in October! We have a back up space at our venue that will allow us to go forward so long as PA doesn’t completely shut down again. I’m so relieved to know that we will definitely be having the wedding. 

I want to forewarn you guys that the bar exam is coming up in 20ish days. I have no idea if my updates will be on time or happening at all as I get closer to that. I’ve been under so much stress with this exam—studying for four and a half months is just—I’m burnt out. I really am. I literally can’t wait to read your reviews because I know they’ll make me smile and laugh. It’ll help. Thank you guys again for all of your understanding.

Beer of the week: This week’s beer is a classic. Guinness! Who doesn’t love a nice pint of Guinness stout? It’s chocolaty and smooth and rich—really a world-class beverage. 

Bankerrtx01: Thank you! I hope you enjoyed it! A world of contradictions: I’m so honored that you’ve decided to stick with my story! I completely understand what you mean about unfinished stories. It can be a huge risk when authors have, in the past, just stopped writing. I’m honored that you’ve decided my work is worth it! Smallwjl: I’ll have to see if I can find that cider! I hope you like this chapter! Boothbonesrule: I’ve always held the belief that, in a different world, Draco would have been a really nice guy. I mean, I really think, even in canon, he was a good friend to Crabbe and Goyle, but that doesn’t change the canon actions he took. I’m glad you’re enjoying my take on his character! PunksterNL: I totally understand—Hinny will happy *eventually* (haven’t decided when yet!). I honestly haven’t decided how I’m approaching that yet, to be honest. I think I have an idea but I have to cultivate it for the next chapter. I definitely think it was the vibes! I’m back to 100% this week and feeling great!

Potter671: Thanks but I can’t take credit for the quidditch—I took a lot of it from the book and added in what I think would have changed because of James and co. being present. Giving Ginny a mirror early is actually a really good idea. I’m going to seriously think about how I want to introduce her to one and when—thank you for the suggestion! ProfessorMarauder: You’re totally fine! It’s because I deleted the old chapter 41 and made a new one I think. I’ve always wondered that, too, and I really hope to start moving in that direction going forward. I have an idea on how to do it but I need to think it through some more. Midnitewanderer: I have plans for the Wizengamot but I haven’t decided when I’m going to implement them yet. Soon? Maybe not? I don’t know. to be honest, I’m scared for Quirrell. After this chapter? Damn, I don’t want to be him. The Minnie idea is really good! I’ll have to make note of that. Don’t worry about Sirius, he’ll get a break soon(ish), I promise. Don’t worry about reviews being too long, I love them! Lupintae: I’m glad you love the story! I had a wonderful time, thank you!

Thank you everyone for your kind words over the last two weeks and thank you for reviewing! I’m back to 100% physically—mentally is meh. Can’t wait for the next update!

Posting Schedule: Once a week. 

Chapter Forty-Two: Confrontations

The large oak entrance doors to Hogwarts castle burst open as James Potter strode through them, his anger radiating around him as white-hot sparks of magic crackled around him. Behind him, Sirius was sprinting along, his cloak billowing as he tried to catch up with James, a look of concern and slight fear on his face. 

“Jamie—” James turned and looked at Sirius with so much fury that Sirius actually took a hesitating step away from James, his hand part way to his wand concealed in its holster. He took a deep breath, “Jamie—James, I think you need to calm down. I’m fucking pissed too; I want to kill Snivellus, but you’re—hell, sparks are flying!”

“I knew he wouldn’t be able to handle having Harry as a student. I let it slide when Harry told me about their issues from his first class—especially when no more issues popped up. But this? Trying to kill my son? He’s gone too far!” 

Sirius looked as if he wanted to say something as his mouth opened slightly before he closed it, fisted his hand, and nodded solemnly. 

With fires in their eyes, James and Sirius made their way toward the door that leads to the dungeon, their vision red as they walked. But they didn’t make it more than a few feet before they both felt a strong hand pulling on their robes, dragging them away from the dungeon and up the castle staircase. 

“What the fuck!” James shouted in protest as he twisted around to see who was dragging them, “Moony, let us go! Snivellus has this coming.”

Remus simply shook his head and continued on, pulling his friends behind him. At one point he felt his grip slipping on their robes as they twisted and pulled, sometimes pointing their wands at him and firing sparks, but he simply tightened his grip and utilized a sticking charm to keep his hands cemented to their robes.

As Remus made his way up the corridor a snide voice stopped him, causing him to groan inwardly. 

“What, exactly, is the meaning of this?” Snape said cooly as his black eyes took in the childish scene before him, “You three are making more of a ruckus in this castle now that you’re adults than you ever made while you were students. And that,” he added cooly, “is a high bar to achieve indeed.” 

“Snivellus!” James snarled as he caught sight of Snape towering over his hunched body, “I know what you did to Harry! I know you and I were never on the best terms but trying to knock my kid off his broom from two hundred feet in the air? You’re insane and I’ll have you sacked!”

Snape sneered, “I assure you that I have no idea what you’re talking about. What happened today to Mr. Potter’s broom is beyond my knowledge. I simply performed the counter-curse that allowed him to barely stay on his broom. Though, if he were a better quidditch player he wouldn’t have almost fallen off to begin with. I’ve been questioning how he managed to make it onto the team. But—I’m sure having a famous quidditch player for a father helped.”

“You greasy haired git!” Sirius yelled as he unsuccessfully tried to pull away from Remus. Remus was inwardly grateful that he had had the forethought to utilize a sticking charm to keep his grip on Sirius and James’ robes. 

“Harry earned his way onto the team and you know it. Why don’t you man up and tell me why you treat my kid like shit, Severus!” 

“I treat Mr. Potter exactly how he deserves to be treated. He’s impudent and arrogant, just like you always were when you were a student. He has no respect for authority and flaunts his fame to achieve anything and everything he wants. I merely—”

“You merely bully a child because you can’t let go of the past!” Sirius shouted.

“Severus, is this true? You treat Harry poorly in class?” Remus asked, his grip slackening. 

“I don’t tolerate arrogance in my classroom, Professor Lupin.”

In his shock, Remus dropped his hands to his side, letting James and Sirius free from his grasp. James, realizing that he was now free, ran at Snape and grabbed him by the front of his robes, fisting his hands in the fabric. He lifted Snape up off the floor so that they were eyelevel now, his hazel eyes boring into the black. 

“You tried to knock Harry off his broom because you’re still bitter about our time here at school? How much more childish can you get? You were a git back then, to us, to Lily, and we got even. But we were kids. Kids Severus. We’re adults now! Taking out your childhood angers on an innocent kid is unacceptable!”

“What is going on here?” a calm voice asked from the other end of the corridor. The sound made everyone in the group jump and James’ face pale. 

“Mr. Potter and his gang attacked me, Sir,” Snape sneered, “They seem to be under the misguided impression that I was the one who cursed Mr. Potter’s broomstick during the quidditch match. Perhaps in some attempt to take him out so my own house could take the win.”

“We saw you, Snivellus! You didn’t take your eyes off Harry while he was being bucked off. It wasn’t until you looked away that he was able to get back on his broom!” Sirius accused, “And we all know that it would take a powerful curse to make a Nimbus 2000 act that way.”

Dumbledore walked down the corridor towards the group, a quiet and knowing smile on his face as he moved, “James, Sirius, Remus, you can let Professor Snape go, now. I have already investigated him and determined that he was not responsible for the attack on Harry. Though I do appreciate your enthusiasm, it is unnecessary.”

James looked at Snape and sneered at him before throwing him back onto his feet. Snape stumbled slightly as his feet hit the ground but he was able to right himself quickly and then brushed the sleeves of his robes off. 

“Now, if you three would please come with me, we can discuss the events of today.”

“Sir,” Remus said politely, “Sir, please. I just—I knew Severus wasn’t responsible for this from the beginning but—how do you know? The evidence is overwhelming.”

“I trust Severus, Remus. I know that he did not do this. Please, if you’ll follow me to my office, I would like to discuss this in more detail with you.”

James looked back over at Snape who had a snide grin on his face as he watched the scene unfold before him. James simply glared at him, unsure of how this was going to play out.   
-  
“I want to get to the bottom of this, Professor. Please, lead the way,” James said through his clenched teeth, “But please know that whoever did this to my son will be getting exactly what they asked for when they attacked my son.”

“I understand, James. Please, if you’d come with me, we can try to sort this out.”

James, Remus, and Sirius all exchanged questioning glances before walking off with Dumbledore, leaving Snape by himself in the corridor. 

Once they reached the safety and solitude of Dumbledore’s office James rounded on the old headmaster.

“What happened? Hogwarts is supposed to be safe but here Harry is, barely two months here at school and a troll has gotten into the castle and nearly killed him and he was almost cursed off his broom during a quidditch match! How on earth has any of that been safe?” 

Dumbledore sat quietly as he listened to James shout at him. Once he was sure James was done, he began, “James, we do our best here at Hogwarts to keep the castle safe. We have been investigating the troll and how it made its way into the castle on Halloween. So far we suspect that it managed to make its way in through the entrance the first years use to come to the castle on September 1st. as for the events of today, I have already ruled out Severus as well as most of the staff. I’m beginning to suspect that the curse was somehow placed on the broom prior to today’s game but we may never be certain.”

“That’s a bullshit answer and you know it!” James shouted at Dumbledore, “There’s something going on in this castle and you need to get to the bottom of it!”

“I assure you, James, that there is nothing going on in this castle that I am not aware of.”

“How do you know it wasn’t Snape? What proof do you have outside of your trust for him?”

“Believe me, James, Severus would never betray me or Hogwarts. I trust him with my life. Outside of that, I checked his wand. The only spell he performed was a counter-curse.”

James felt himself deflate a little. If the only spell his wand showed he performed was the counter-curse, then Snape couldn’t have been the one who cursed Harry’s broom. Then the fear gripped him again as he thought: Who did?

~ID~

Remus found himself working in his office late again this evening. The full moon was tomorrow and he was trying to prepare lessons for Professor Vector who had kindly agreed to substitute his classes for him while he was preoccupied preparing for that evening. It was nearly eleven at night before Remus realized that he should consider packing his things up and head to bed—but he only needed to finish a few more things, he could probably finish within the hour. Yawning, he decided to finish things up so he didn’t have to worry about it in the morning. 

As he sipped his tea he continued writing out information for Professor Vector, his quill scratching the parchment as he worked. His office was quiet and still; the only sounds he could hear this late in the evening was the crackling of the fire he had lit to keep warm. He took a moment to look into the orange flames and watch their heated dance. 

Remus had always been fascinated by fire. Not in the sense that fire could destroy things or burn objects and buildings but, rather, the heat and beauty of it. it was bright and warm and shone while it danced. He could watch the flames of a fire for hours while thinking about everything in life. As he watched the flames, his hand accidentally brushed against the letter he had sat on his desk. 

Nymphadora had been writing to him again, trying to talk to him about what had happened the other week. Remus had yet to respond to her. How do you tell the woman that you slept with that it was a mistake and that a relationship wasn’t in the cards for them? He sighed as he caught sight of her spiky handwriting. He noticed, curiously, that the ink wasn’t the same color as the last time he saw it. he smiled as he realized that she uses color-change ink. He remembered that she had used it all throughout her time at Hogwarts but he didn’t think she had continued that tradition after graduation. He carefully reached out a finger and traced the words she wrote. “All my love, Dora”.

He sighed. She’s too young. She’s too—everything. How can he possibly think of subjecting someone as perfect as her to someone as disgusting as himself? She deserved more—deserved someone whole and human. Someone who can give her everything she wants in life. The wolf in him growled in opposition—why couldn’t he be enough? He gritted his teeth and shook his head, pushing the wolf back inside, refusing to listen to it. 

He shook his head and growled as he pushed himself away from the desk and stood up. He’d clearly been awake for too long if he was thinking about all of this again. He quickly stacked his parchment up and put his quills away, straightening his desk before leaving his office for the evening. He quietly locked his office door and headed down the corridor to his rooms. 

Remus stepped inside of his rooms at Hogwarts and glanced around. The castle was built to accommodate the professors of Hogwarts and they were given, what felt to Remus, lavish bedchambers. His rooms at Hogwarts included a spacious, furnished living room with a fireplace and an updated kitchen in case he ever decided he wanted to cook his own meals instead of eating at the head table. He enjoyed having a stove so that he could make himself tea or cocoa late at night without bothering the house elves. Even though he knew that’s what they were there for he always felt bad for bothering them so late in the evening. 

Off of his living room Remus had a spacious, private office in case he ever needed to do work where he wouldn’t be bothered by the students. Remus rarely used that office, he preferred to keep himself available to the students, but he did keep his more intimate research on horcruxes in that office. He didn’t want to risk students stumbling on his research and trying to make one of the wretched things themselves. 

In his bedroom adjoining the living room Remus had a large, soft bed, and dressers and a walk in closet. Attached to his room was a large, full bathroom with a deep soaking tub and shower. Dumbledore had told him that he had chosen this room for Remus specifically for the tub. He had hoped that it would help Remus’ recovery after his transformations. He was, of course, correct; taking hot baths after the full moon always helped his aching muscles—he had been extremely pleased to find the tub when he moved into the castle. 

Remus kicked his shoes off and closed the door to his rooms. The castle magically locked the door to anyone except for himself, Harry, James, and Sirius. This was one of the few places that he felt like he could be completely himself within the castle. He loved teaching, but it always felt like he was putting on a show for the students and the one place he could be himself and alone was his rooms. 

He quickly put his slippers on and padded over to the stove, starting a cup of cocoa for himself. He wasn’t sure how long it would take him to relax enough to fall asleep tonight. He always seemed to have excess energy in the nights before the full moon but he had never quite figured out how to burn through it. 

He smiled as he poured the cocoa into a mug and took a cautious sip. It scalded his mouth.

“Oh! Ouch, ouch. Hot!” Remus murmured as he blew on the cocoa. 

Remus continued to blow on the cocoa as he made his way to the couch and sat down, crossing his legs and picking up the novel he had been reading lately. He got comfortable and had only read through a few pages before he was interrupted by a bright, white light. 

Surprise overtook him as he looked at the patronus sitting in front of him. It looked like rabbit with long floppy ears. He frowned and turned his head slightly, confusion overtaking him as it opened its mouth and a familiar voice spoke. 

“You up?” Tonks’ voice came from the patronus.

“Are—are you trying to come over or something?” Remus asked himself as he stared at the patronus. 

“Basically, yeah,” Tonks’ voice replied.

Remus jumped, spilling cocoa on jacket, “Did you just hear me and reply back?” 

“Yup! Cool spell, huh? So I’m assuming you’re up since you’re talking to me. Where are you?”

“How on earth are you able to respond to me with the same patronus? We should need to send them back and forth in order to communicate.”

“It’s a nifty spell the ministry has been working on. They haven’t released it to the public yet because it will come in handy for the aurors when we’re out on assignments. Pretty bad ass isn’t it?”

“It’s fascinating,” Remus replied as he looked at the patronus more closely, “Absolutely fascinating. How did you do it?”

“Nuh, uh. I’m not telling you until you tell me where you are.”

“What? Uh, I’m in my rooms at Hogwarts. Is it a variant of the patronus charm?”

Remus heard Tonks’ laugh before the patronus vanished into smoke before his eyes. Several seconds later he heard his fireplace roar to life—he sat up stock straight, realization hitting him. 

Tonks stepped out into Remus’ living room, looking around at the decorations and furniture before stepping into the living room and smiling, “You know, I had imagined what your room looked like for years. For some reason I imagined them a bit more—I don’t know, more educatedly decorated? Maybe some muggle stuff and secrecy sensors and stuff? A foe glass or the like? But this—this is nice. It’s quiet and cozy and warm. It’s very you.”

“I—Dora! You can’t just show up in my room! It’s—it’s unseemly! Not to mention very forward considering I didn’t invite you here.”

“Oh pish. If you didn’t want me here you would have banned me from your floo access. Why haven’t you answered my letters, Remus?”

Remus frowned and looked away, “Dora I—we talked about this. This, us, it’s not going to work and you know it. I’m not right for you.”

“Oh come off it, Remus. You keep going on about how you aren’t good for anyone. What’s that supposed to mean, anyway? You’re an amazing and kind person. You helped James raise Harry and you’re a fantastic teacher. I’ve never seen you be anything but kind to anyone,” Tonks sat down next to Remus and took his hand, “You do everything for your students and Harry—you’re an amazing man.”

Remus pulled his hand away from Tonks and turned away from her, “Dora, you don’t understand. Here in this castle—you’ve only seen me when I’ve been under Dumbledore’s protection. Out there—I’m not the same person. If it weren’t for Dumbledore, I wouldn’t even have a job. I’m—you wouldn’t understand.”

“What wouldn’t I understand? What aren’t you telling me?”

“I can’t, Dora. You would hate yourself. I can’t stay up too late, I have work in the morning,” Remus stood up as if he was going to see Tonks to the fireplace when he realized she was staring at him with that intense, burning look she gave him the last time they were together. He swallowed hard as he looked into her grey eyes; her eyes were grey today, he thought. How beautiful and unique. 

“We both know you aren’t working tomorrow, Remus.”

The color drained from Remus’ face as he looked at Tonks, “What are you going on about? Tomorrow’s Friday—of course I have lessons tomorrow. I can’t just take off.”

“You don’t have classes tomorrow, Remus.”

“I—”

“Tomorrow’s the full moon.”

Fear filled him, consuming him, as he realized the full weight of what Tonks said to him. “Tomorrow’s the full moon.” How would she know the significance of that bit of information? Remus could feel the beads of sweat forming at the back of his neck as he looked at Tonks, her eyes serious and full of knowledge and anger. 

“When did you—when did you figure it out?”

Tonks frowned, “What? Like it’s hard? I was your student for four years. You were always gone during the day of and the day after the full moon and when you did come back you were always exhausted and a little ill. It’s not like it was a big secret, Remus. The smarter students had it worked out while I was here. We never told anyone who didn’t work it out for themselves, of course, but you never really hid it well. With the moon tomorrow I figured you were feeling pretty energetic and I’m running on night shift time right now because I’m getting the shit shifts as the newest hire. I thought I’d come keep you company since you’re going to be up for most of the night anyway.”

“I—how did you—what—” Remus stuttered. He was completely thrown off—how did so many people figure his secret out? And, more importantly, why didn’t they tell anyone or petition for his removal from the school?

Tonks frowned, “Are you trying to figure out why none of us ever reported you?”

“I—yeah.”

Tonks shrugged, “You’re a good professor and you’ve never hurt anyone. We all know that you wouldn’t kill a bug let alone hurt one of your students so what would be the point in reporting you? You’re a much-loved professor, Professor.”

“And you knew? You knew when we—when I—”

Tonks smiled slightly and nodded, “Of course I did. I just don’t understand why you think you’re not good enough to be with someone.” 

“I—Dora. I’m a social pariah. Anyone I’m with—outwardly and openly with won’t just have to deal with the personal and immediate effects of being with a werewolf. They’d eventually have to deal with the social implications of it. As you can imagine, not everyone is a kind as it seems many of my students have been over the years. Anyone who’s openly with me faces the out lash of most of the wizarding community and could become a target for their aggression. I could never—would never put anyone through that.”

“So then don’t be ‘outwardly’ with anyone,” Tonks said, quoting Remus’ language, “Be privately with someone. Why does the general public need to know who you’re sleeping with, anyway?”

“I don’t think you understand, Dora. Whoever’s with me—we’d never have a normal relationship. I couldn’t—I couldn’t take them out on dates in the wizarding world. I don’t even know if I’d be able to get married for fear of what others would do when they found out.”

“Ok, so our dates will be strictly in the muggle world. I’ve always wanted to go see a movie. Imagine! Muggles make these moving pictures with sound that tell stories! How fascinating.”

Remus’ mouth gaped open as he listened to Tonks speak. She had no idea what she was talking about. She’s too young to understand, to believe a relationship with him would lead to anything but happiness. Her—she was worth more than what he could give her. 

“Stop,” Tonks said forcefully, “Stop trying to talk yourself out of anything. Why can’t you just—be? You’re trying so hard to keep everyone around you safe, to do what you think you need to do to accomplish that, that you’re forfeiting your own happiness.” 

“Dora, I don’t deserve—”

“Yes, you do!” Tonks shouted as she looked at him, her eyes pleading, “Everyone does. Especially someone as kind and wonderful as you.”

“Dora—”

“Oh just shut up,” Tonks said as she grabbed onto the collar of his jacket and yanked him toward her, crushing her lips to his and then pulling back, “Shut up, Professor.”

Tonks crushed her lips to his again and moaned as she pushed herself closer to Remus. 

Remus gripped Tonks’ shoulders, losing himself in her touch for just a moment. Savoring the feel of her soft lips pressed against his before pushing her away, moving his lips just a breath away, “Dora, are you sure you understand what you’re doing? What this means?”

“Get over yourself,” she whispered harshly, “Sometimes it’s not all about you, Remus.”

Remus gripped her so tightly she cried out in shock—he simply silenced her with his mouth, allowing himself to taste the sweetness on her lips. He marveled at her taste, the honey flavor that lingered on his tongue after he ran it over her bottom lip. 

Tearing his lips away from hers, Remus trailed his down her jaw line and neck, running his tongue along her sweet skin as he went. He could feel the wolf from somewhere deep inside of him rumbling in pleasure and acceptance. 

As his lips reached her collar bone, Remus decided that she had entirely too many clothes on for his liking. Pulling his hand away from her, he moved his fingers through the air as he took a moment to think. 

Tonks gasped in surprise at the sudden feeling of warm skin against her flesh as she realized she was now sitting in her underwear. She wondered for a moment where her clothes went but was quickly distracted by Remus’ roaming lips on her exposed breasts. Her head rolled back in pleasure as Remus pushed her down on the couch and crawled on top of her. He grabbed her wrists and held them up above her head as he feasted on her neck. 

Remus kissed his way up to Tonks’ ear and nipped at her lobe before whispering, “Are you sure this is what you want? The first time we could forget. But the second?”

Tonks gasped at the feel of Remus’ teeth and lips against her ear, his warm breath against her skin. She arched her back, pressing herself against his hips and gasped, “Yes.”

Remus kissed her lips as he pressed his hips against her, savoring the warmth he could feel between her legs. 

“Hot already?” Remus breathed as he pressed against her harder, vanishing his shirt and trousers. 

Tonks cried out as she suddenly felt Remus pressing against her in his entirety. She tried to pull her hands away from Remus’ grip to touch him, hold him, drag her fingers down his back, but she was met with unyielding resistance. 

“Oh no, that’s not how this works, Nymphadora.”

Remus dragged his hand down Tonks’ body, running his fingers along her stomach, making her quiver under his touch. As she opened her eyes to look at him, her need evident. He smiled and carefully unclasped her bra, letting her breasts spill into his hand. He quickly bent his head down and took one into his mouth and grazed his teeth along her nipple, feeling it harden against his tongue. He marveled at the stiff peak it turned into.

He could feel Tonks trying to tug her hands out of his grip and smiled, not tonight. She needs to understand what she’s getting into here. He carefully tightened his grip on her wrists and moved his other hand down to her panties and ran his fingers along the top of them, hardening as he heard her gasping beneath him. He ran his hand down to her thigh and to her over her lacy knickers. She was so wet. 

Remus smiled to himself and pushed her knickers to the side and carefully explored Tonks, feeling the warmth of her folds and skin. As she moaned, he ran his thumb over her clit, groaning as she cried out to him. Remus carefully slipped a finger into her, keeping his thumb against her as he did, rubbing it slowly as he moved his wrist slowly, drawing out her pleasure. 

Tonks cried out as Remus’ hand moved faster. She could feel the heat building inside of her as he added a second finger, filling her. He moved his hand quicker, rubbing his thumb against her as he moved. He smiled as he felt her tighten against him and moan loudly. He moved his fingers as fast as he could, throbbing with need as he felt her tighten and release, crying out as she went over the edge. 

Tonks arched her back as she came, crying out to Remus for more, “Fuck me, Remus! I need you. Now!” 

Remus crushed his mouth to Tonks’ as he ripped her knickers off and plunged into her, her warmth enveloping him. He moaned as he pushed into her faster, harder, as he gripped her hips and buried himself in her. Remus moved faster—feeling her tighten against him made it almost impossible to control himself as he fucked her. After she cried out in pleasure one final time he groaned as the orgasm overcame him. 

At some point they had made their way to Remus’ bedroom. They managed to find the energy to pleasure each other two more times throughout the night. Once Tonks had managed to fall asleep Remus found himself looking at her, taking her in as he thought. This was going to be more complicated than he had thought it would be. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and Review!


	43. Chapter Forty-Three: Snowy Evenings

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I just have to say, bridal shower #1 was AMAZING. All the decorations were absolutely beautiful and perfect and the food was delicious. I literally couldn’t have asked for a better party and I can’t wait for #2 this weekend!! I hope you all had a lovely weekend! I’ve also finally decided on a hair style—Hermione’s hair from the GOF Movie during the Yule ball! It looks so lovely on me—especially with my Diadem hair comb!

I do want to give all of you a heads up that I’m going to be taking a two week hiatus. I am so stressed out between wedding planning and the bar exam and running the house/chores and such that I really need to focus on getting through this hurtle. I promise to have an update for you all the weekend of October 10th. I’ll miss all of you while I’m gone and can’t wait to see what you think of what I have in store for Christmas!

Beer of the Week: The Riverhead CiderHouse Founder’s Reserve Hard Cider! This cider was absolutely fantastic. It was smooth and dry with notes of cinnamon and allspice. It really tasted reminiscent of apple pie! I strongly recommend this cider—it went down way too easily and left me wishing I had gotten more than one bottle!

Midnitewanderer: Snape is definitely one of my absolute least favorite characters. In fact, I think the backstory that JKR gave him made his character even worse. Trust me, he has some stuff coming throughout my series. We just have to get there. As for the wolf, I really love what Bree did in her “A Second Chance” story with Remus and his werewolf side. I want to do a play on that and see how it works out in my story. I think it gives him a whole other layer of character development I really want to play with. So, of course the wolf would be angry, the wolf knows what they want and it doesn’t have the reservations that Remus does! Trust me, he will come around, it’s just a matter of when at this point! SomeGuyFawkes: I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the first three chapters of my story. It’s my goal at some point to go back and tweak the writing style so that it’s more in sync with what I’ve grown into but it’s still down the road. As for your “actionable feedback”—I understand that some words may seem repetitive, however, some descriptive language cannot be substituted. I continuously try my best to be sure that I avoid too much repetitive words and attempt to utilize synonyms as often as possible. Boothbonesrule: I can promise you that this will DEFINITELY be a Hinny story. They are, of course, only 10/11 right now. Give it time and I promise their relationship will blossom! 

Potter671: I’m so sorry to hear about your dog! I’m a huge dog lover and I can’t even begin to imagine your pain with the loss of a best furry friend. I’m glad that my chapter update was able to help you with their passing. I’m glad that you enjoyed how I wrote James! I have some ideas I want to tie in with that later on in the series that I think you’ll enjoy. I’m definitely having fun fleshing out his character since we don’t know too much about him from Canon. Smallwjl: Gotta love Remadora! The strong but moody werewolf and his one true love that turns him into a soft and squishy puppy. It’s like the beginning of one of those cheesy teen books. Quansit: I never said that Draco’s relationship with Crabbe and Goyle was a healthy one, just that he was a good friend in the ways that he was taught to be. You have to remember that Pure Blood children (with some exceptions) were generally raised with a different understanding of the world. You also have to remember how hard Draco tried to save both Crabbe and Goyle from the fiend fire in their seventh year and how upset he was when Crabbe didn’t make it out of the room of requirement. In the end, he was a good friend for the way they were raised—with the right upbringing and influence I believe he would have been able to have healthy and positive friendships. 

Thank you to all of you who have continued to read Ignoring Destiny this long! Thank you for your continued support and understanding as I complete my journey into the legal profession and get my wedding preparations underway. You are all absolutely amazing and you all remind me why I continue to write this fic. I can’t wait to give you another update and I will miss you all deeply until I return. 

Posting Schedule: Once a week starting again on October 11, 2020. 

Enjoy this next installment of Ignoring Destiny!

Chapter Forty-Three: Snowy Evenings

The small group of friends were seated at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall eating breakfast together. Christmas break was still two weeks away but the hall was already buzzing with excitement. The holiday decorations had been put up the night before, bathing the room in Christmas magic with everything from trees taller than Hagrid to the small fairies and Christmas baubles littering the branches. Fake, everlasting snow had been strategically placed throughout the room, giving it a glowing, homey look. Harry looked up as the morning post flew into the hall, owls hooting and screeching as they flew. He watched as an old owl landed in front of Ron who blushed and attempted to remove the letter as quickly as he could. The old owl hopped down the table to the other Weasley children, depositing a letter to each of them. 

Ron quickly opened the letter and read it quickly, his face falling as he took in the words. 

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked, concerned. 

Ron shook his head as he finished reading before setting the paper aside, sighing, “I guess I can keep doing research here over the break. Mum and dad are taking Ginny to Romania to visit Charlie for Christmas. We all have to stay here for the break.”

“Yeah, well, I might be staying with you. I haven’t decided if I’m going to go home for Christmas or not yet,” Draco added sourly. 

“You guys aren’t going home for Christmas?” Harry asked.

Ron shook his head while Draco shrugged, “I don’t know if I want to deal with my father right now. It won’t be much of a Christmas, anyway.”

“Should we get to the library and try to get some research in before classes?” Hermione asked brightly. 

The three boys nodded solemnly before they all made their way to the library. Once they reached it, Harry made his way away from the group and ducked back out and into a room off the next hall, hoping he was far enough away that they wouldn’t hear him if his friends came after him. 

As he stepped into the room, he noticed immediately that the class room hadn’t been used in a very long time. The desks and chairs were pushed up against the walls and stacked out of the way leaving the center of the room empty except for a large, ornate mirror. Harry only noticed the mirror as he was pulling out the one housed in the pocket of his robes—curiosity over the large object overwhelmed him. 

He carefully walked up to the large mirror and looked into it, examining himself. He looked in surprise as he saw what looked like his mother and father in the mirror. He tilted his head as he saw the red head whose head was bent down, her hair shielding her face from view, as the black-haired man looked at her, deeply in love. The man who Harry assumed was his father had his arm around a woman he didn’t recognize, her fiery red hair drawing his eye. He could see a small bundle in her arms, she was looking down at it, her hair shielding her face as he watched. Then his breath caught in his throat as he caught sight of the man’s eyes, his eyes. Was the man him? If it was, who was the woman? 

In the background of the scene he could see a pile of black robes and a broken wand on the ground. He realized that the pile must be Voldemort—he must have defeated Voldemort and married this woman? Does this mirror show the future? 

Harry gazed at the mirror, drinking in the tranquil scene before him, until he heard the bell toll, signaling that classes were about to begin. He considered skipping his first class so he could continue to examine the mirror. Maybe he could figure out how it worked. But he decided against it. He knew if he skipped class his absence would be noticed by his friends and they would come looking for him. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to share this secret with them quite yet. 

Harry quickly made his way to class and barely made it into the room on time. As he ran into the classroom Ron, Hermione, and Draco look at him quizzically. He shook his head and took his seat and began unpacking his bag. 

As soon as class ended his friends immediately bombarded him with questions regarding his whereabouts. 

“I just nipped off to talk to my dad but I couldn’t get ahold of him,” Harry explained. He had decided not to tell them about the mirror yet. He wanted to return and look at it again before he did. 

Hermione looked at him quizzically, almost as if she didn’t quite believe his story, while Ron and Draco nodded, appeased. The group headed towards their next classes. 

It wasn’t until lunch time that Harry was able to step into an unused classroom and call James on his mirror. James answered on the third vibration. 

“Harry! Hey! What’s up? How’s school going?”

Harry smiled as he caught sight of James’ windblown hair and the sight of the blue sky behind him. He caught his dad at practice, apparently, “Hey dad! School’s fine. They decorated for the holiday already here. It looks awesome!”

“Good. How are your marks?”

“They’re alright. I could be doing better in potions,” Harry admitted.

“Well, I can’t really fault you for that,” James said darkly, “That isn’t really your fault.”

Harry frowned, “Anyway. I called to ask you about Christmas. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley are taking Ginny to Romania to visit Charlie for the holiday so Ron, Fred, George, and Percy won’t have anywhere to go—they’ll be stuck at school for the whole holiday! Do you think they could—”

James beamed, “Bring them home! The more the merrier and we certainly have enough room for them!”

Harry smiled, “Brilliant! And, Draco—he’s not sure if he wants to go home or not…”

“Bring him, too, if he decides to stay. I’ll deal with his parents if it becomes an issue.”

“Are you sure that’s not too many people?”

“Nah. We have so much space here. Honestly, we could house three Weasley families. Bring them along. It’ll be better than staying at the castle, that’s for sure.”

Harry beamed at James, “Thanks dad! I’ll go let them know now! I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye, Harry. Stay safe!” James warned. 

Harry quickly put his mirror away and made his way to the great hall. His eyes scanned the crowds, searching for Ron and Draco. He found them quickly and made his way over to them.

“Hey! Guys, you won’t believe it. Dad invited you guys for the holiday! Ron, your brothers can come, too, if they want. You can stay at the manor—it’ll be much better than staying here for Christmas.”

Ron beamed at him, “Brilliant, Harry! I’ll go let Fred and George know. They’ll tell Percy and I can write mum. You’re the best, mate.”

Draco frowned and hung his head a bit, “I can’t. I just got a letter from father. He expects me home at Malfoy Manor for the holidays. This is going to be a wonderful Christmas.”

Hermione frowned, “You don’t think he’s planning something, do you?”

Draco shrugged, “I don’t know. I’m surprised he wants me home—I’m sure he’s got some reason for that. Unless my mother asked him to allow me home. We’ll see I guess.”

The group grew silent, none of them liked how this sounded. 

~ID~

“Ginny! Come downstairs and help me finish dinner!” Mrs. Weasley called from the kitchen.

Ginny sighed and flopped back down on her bed. She had been growing increasingly more bored over the last few weeks as she’d been stuck at home with her parents. Alone. She couldn’t even go nick a broom from the shed because her brothers had taken all of the good ones. The one that was left flew to the side more often than not and it was increasingly frustrating her. 

“Ginny! Now!” Mrs. Weasley called after a few more minutes, her tone growing impatient. 

Rolling over, Ginny groaned audibly. She had no idea why her mom wanted her to come assist with dinner. Mrs. Weasley was very aware that Ginny burned any food she touched. This somehow had included the cereal she had poured for herself yesterday morning. That had been interesting. She had been pouring the milk into her bowl, over top of the cereal, while her mother had been nagging her about learning to cook, when the cereal had spontaneously caught fire. The flame had reached about 3 feet high, singing Ginny’s eyebrows, before Mrs. Weasley managed to put it out. Ginny had actually just finished recounting the events of that morning in a letter to Harry and in one to Draco. 

Ginny stood up slowly and began making her way downstairs. She made sure to walk down the stairs loudly so that Mrs. Weasley knew she was on her way to the kitchen. As she entered, she saw her mother with her back to the kitchen door as she stirred a pot on the stove. 

Hearing Ginny walk in the room, Mrs. Weasley asked, “Ginny, dear, can you set the table? We’re having onion soup for dinner. There’s some rolls here on the counter I want you to set out, too.”

“Sure,” Ginny said grudgingly. She quickly set the table and took her seat, waiting for Mrs. Weasley. 

“Ron sent me a letter today,” Mrs. Weasley said.

Ginny suddenly felt a pang in her heart—she sadly recalled that Ron had yet to owl her since he’d gone off to Hogwarts, much in opposition to what he had promised. Fred and George had owled her a few times, but not nearly as much as they had promised to. 

Mr. Weasley made his way into the kitchen and took his seat at the table as he smiled at Ginny, “Evening, dear. How was your day? Did your mum tell you the news?”

Ginny frowned, “What news?” 

“I was just getting to that,” Mrs. Weasley flustered, “I was just saying that Ron owled us today about the holiday. You know we’re going to Romania, Ginny dear, and the boys were going to stay at Hogwarts because of how expensive the trip is. Well, Mr. Potter offered to have the boys over for the Christmas holiday. Isn’t that lovely?”

“They’re all staying together with Harry and Mr. Potter?” Ginny asked, a note of jealousy in her voice, “While I spend the holiday with you?”

“Well,” Mr. Weasley started hesitantly, everyone in the family was quite aware of Ginny’s temper, “Mr. Potter owled us as well, making sure that we were aware, and had given our permission, for the boys to stay with him over the holiday. He also asked us if we would be willing to let you stay there for the holiday as well. We thought we’d give you the option between visiting Charlie or staying with your brothers and Harry for the holiday. What do you think, pumpkin?”

Ginny blinked, taking in what her father had just asked her. She quickly looked over at her mother and then back at her father, unsure of what she was supposed to say or do.

“Well,” Ginny said slowly, “I—I’d kind of like to spend the holiday at home. Charlie visits a lot but I haven’t seen Ron or Fred and George or Percy since September. And it would be nice to see Harry. Would that be ok?”

Mrs. Weasley frowned at Mr. Weasley as he smiled at Ginny sadly, “Of course it is, pumpkin. We’ll let Mr. Potter know you’ll be joining them for the holiday and your mother will help you pack for the trip. We’re going to miss you while we’re gone.”

“Ginny, dear, if you change your mind just let us know, ok?” Mrs. Weasley said to Ginny, “We’d be happy to have you join us like we originally planned.”

Ginny nodded silently and watched as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley ladled soup out and began eating, a large smile breaking out on her face as she thought about her upcoming holiday expedition. 

~ID~

Harry and company sat at dinner the night before Christmas break. They had been discussing the possibilities of who Nicolas Flamel was and what books they were going to read next. So far their search had been unproductive but Draco had a few ideas on where to look next.

“Look,” Draco said as he forked a bit of pot roast, “We’re all going home for the holiday, right? Hermione, why don’t you check out the muggle library? Maybe this guy was a famous muggle and we’re protecting something he made or did? Or maybe even Flamel himself. That’s unlikely but you never know. While you’re doing that, Harry, Ron, and I can research the Potter and Malfoy family libraries. Harry, I know your library has that really cool search system right? Where you can check the book for specific names and subjects?”

Harry nodded, “Yeah. I think we can search by name. We can definitely search by subject though.”

“Right. Our library has that, too. We can use that system to try to find anything about Flamel. Maybe the school library doesn’t have anything about him because he worked with dark magic. If that’s the case, one of our libraries would have something about him, right?” 

“That’s a really good idea, Draco,” Hermione said, “I never would have thought to have you guys check your private libraries. And if none of that pans out, we can figure out a way into the restricted section of the library. I bet we could find something there.”

The group nodded in agreement just as an owl flew over head and landed in front of Harry, his leg sticking out for him to take the letter attached to it.

Harry frowned, “What’s this?” he carefully pulled the letter off the leg of the owl and unfurled it, scanning the document. His lips twitched into a broad smile as he recognized the curly handwriting on the page. 

H

You won’t believe what my parents just told me at dinner. Apparently your dad owled them about the holiday and invited my brothers over for it since my parents are going to Romania without them. Did you know that? Well, my parents gave them permission to go. But apparently your dad also invited me! Mum and dad gave me the choice between Romania and your house for the holiday. I told them I wanted to go to your house because I haven’t seen any of you guys in ages but I see Charlie once a month or so. Isn’t that exciting? I hope your dad didn’t tell you before you got this letter—I know you two have those mirrors so you hear from him more quickly than an owl can fly but, still. 

It must be nice having such an easy and fast way to communicate with your dad and uncles. I wonder why they never made more and sold them. Can you imagine how much money those mirrors would fetch on the market? 

Anyway, I can’t wait to see you tomorrow! Stay safe. 

All my love,

G

“Guys! Check this out!” Harry said as he passed the letter to Hermione. Once she was done reading it she passed it to Draco who read it with Ron looking over his shoulder. Each of them beaming in response.

“Mom and dad are letting Ginny stay for Christmas? I wonder how she convinced them to do that. Mom and dad are normally much more careful with Gin than they are with us. I guess they think we’re sturdier or something.”

“Isn’t it great? We’ll all be together for the holiday. Well, you know what I mean.”

Draco looked away from his friends, his eyes downcast. 

As they finished up dinner Ron and Harry were still discussing the upcoming holiday together. They made their way ahead of Hermione and Draco as they made their way toward the common room. As they walked Hermione came to a slow stop. Draco, noticing this, stopped with her and looked at her, confused. 

“Everything ok?” Draco asked.

“I wanted to ask you the same thing. I noticed you were upset during dinner. Is everything alright?”

“Oh,” Draco said, smiling sadly, “I guess? Not really. I was just thinking about my holiday. I have to spend it at home with my father—I have no idea what he has planned for me and I’m really not looking forward to it.”

“Why can’t you just stay here for the holiday?”

Draco shook his head, “Father told me I have to come home. Ignoring his demands would be worse than just going home. Thank you for your concern though.”

Hermione frowned, “Well, I’m here for you, ok? And I know Ron and Harry are, too.”

“Thanks, Hermione. I’m going to head to bed now, though. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Hermione nodded and watched as Draco headed off toward Ravenclaw Tower. She was worried about what was to come over this holiday. 

~ID~

Harry stepped off the Hogwarts Express after the long trip and glanced around the platform. Ron, Fred, and George filed out behind him as he looked around for James. He smiled as he caught sight of James and Sirius standing further down the platform as they eyed a man with blonde hair. Harry recognized the man as Draco’s father. A sudden anger filled Harry as he saw Mr. Malfoy standing on the platform, a haughty expression on his face. 

“Gin-Gin!” Fred yelled from behind Harry, making him jump in surprise. Ginny was here?

Harry looked around the platform quickly, searching for the scarlet hair in the crowd. It didn’t take him long to locate Ginny making a beeline toward them, her hair billowing behind her. She quickly jumped into Fred’s outstretched arms, giving him a tight hug. Her brothers quickly passed her around, each hugging her in turn and commenting on how much she’d grown since they saw her in September. Harry watched her smile as she commented on how much they changed before moving to Harry and engulfing him in a large hug. 

He was surprised at how instantly he calmed down. He had been so angry, so worried, when he saw Mr. Malfoy on the platform but now he felt tranquil and happy again. Sure, he was still worried about Draco, but it was happy here. 

The little group made their way toward James and Sirius. Harry could see how grey Draco had turned when he realized his father had come to fetch him from the train. Harry muttered to Draco from the corner of his mouth as they walked.

“Remember, our house is open if anything happens. You know how to get to us.”

Harry saw from the corner of his eye Draco’s head move a fraction of an inch, nodded his understanding before he walked off to his father. Harry watched as Mr. Malfoy turned on his heel as soon as he caught sight of Draco and walked off, Draco trailing behind him miserably. 

Harry walked head first into James as he watched the scene unfold, completely oblivious to his surroundings. James quickly reached out his hands and steadied Harry, a frown on his face as he watched Draco walk off with Lucy. 

“Careful, Harry, you’ll run me over! Look at you. You had to have grown a whole foot since you’ve been gone! Hello everyone. I see you found Ginny. She was so anxious to see you she insisted on coming with us to fetch you.”

“Alright Weasleys! Potter! Line up, let’s go. One at a time now!” Sirius barked playfully to the group of kids. He and James quickly corralled them as they all began walking toward the barrier.

“Wait,” Sirius said, “Aren’t we missing one?”

James frowned and turned to count the group, “No—no I don’t think so. Percy owled me this morning to tell me he was going to stay at school. He seemed to think it was his duty as a prefect to stay and keep an eye on those who couldn’t go home for the holiday.”

Fred and George rolled their eyes, “Sounds like Perce—”

“Did you know he’s a prefect?”

“He only mentions it everyday—”

“Every hour—”

“Every minute.”

“Honestly, he drives us bonkers.”

Ginny mumbled under her breath so quietly that only Harry could hear her, “Those two drive me bonkers.”

Harry snorted and looked as Ginny gave him a sly smile, her hair hiding her face from her brothers in a way that seemed oddly familiar to him. He frowned as they made their way out into the evening air, pushing it aside as they piled into the car James had enchanted to be larger on the inside. He watched as Fred and George pushed Ron to the side so that Ginny could get in first. She smiled and bowed to them before sliding into the car, a wicked grin on her face as she winked at Harry. It was going to be an interesting holiday. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!!


	44. Chapter Forty-Four: Dear Reader, Are You There?

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I’m back!! I hope you all didn’t miss me too much over the last two weeks. I had an amazing time at my bridal shower and am finally done with the bar exam. Hopefully I passed and I don’t have to do that shit all over again. It…did not do well for my mental health. Things have been really tough the last two weeks. But, it’s over now and I can finally focus on my wedding that’s in literally 10 days! We finally got the center pieces completed—the candles float guys! The float in the air and they look so fucking cool! And my dad made wands for favors and it’s just going to be so awesome. And we booked our honeymoon and I’m finally going to get to go to Harry Potter World! I’m so excited! And I’m so excited to be back to doing updates for you guys. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Beer of the week: The beer of the week this week is Troegs chocolate stout. This is an amazing nitro stout brewed with chocolate. You can find it on tap or in a can in sampler packs and it is absolutely delicious. I’m talking liquid chocolate in a glass delicious. It’s light and effervescent and chock full of flavor. 10/10 recommend.

Reviews: Potter671: Thank you! I’m glad you liked my mirror scene. I’m glad you liked the chapter and I hope you enjoy what I have in store in this one! Midnitewanderer: Denile is TOTALLY just a river in Egypt! Ha. Just wait until he gets back to school—I have so many more ideas with this mirror. I’m sure Molly knows exactly how Ginny feels—moms have an intuition like that. I honestly haven’t decided if I want Molly to be a roadblock or not. I have been debating it though. The mistletoe is a good idea though! Also, thank you! The hair looks absolutely amazing with my bouquet. It has paper flowers from the HP books in it as well as red roses and greenery. My grandmother put it together for me and it has lacing and pearls from my mother-in-law’s wedding dress. They’re absolutely beautiful and the hair just brings all of it together. I’m so excited! Triggbc: glad you liked the chapter!

Boothbonesrule: Thank you! I needed all the luck I could get. I’m quite excited to get to the point that Harry realizes what he’s been seeing. I’m just not sure when exactly it’ll happen. But I know how it will. Smallwjl: Really? I hope you liked my take. I wanted to do something realistic but unique. Thank you! It was a blast. Rosa03mn: I’m glad you like it! Ask and you shall receive! RoyaleGaming1: OMG I didn’t even realize I swapped the locations! All those years of training in HP trivia and I have such a stupid brain fart! I’ll fix that ASAP—thank you for pointing that out! Sorry you don’t like how I respond to comments—my favorite fic author does it this way and I guess it just stuck with me. My fiancé/husband hates that I do it this way too. 

Posting Schedule: Once a week.

Thank you everyone for being so understanding with my hiatus! I’m so happy to be posting again and I literally cannot wait to read your reviews! You’re the reason I’ve continued writing this story! 

Chapter Forty-Four: Dear Reader, Can You Hear Me?

It didn’t take the group long to make their way back to Potter Manor. They all talked and laughed, catching up with one another while James drove. 

Ginny seemed to be the life of the party. She was continuously throwing out one-liners left and right, letting loose after being cooped up for so long at the Burrow without anyone besides her parents at home. 

Harry was simply sitting back and relaxing, taking in the noise and excitement around him, waiting for the moment that they pulled up to his house. He missed home and he missed Cocoa. He was looking forward to spending the holiday at home with his friends. 

James finally pulled the car up the long drive to Potter Manor, the group in the back cheering and chattering excitedly as they pulled up.

“What should we do first?” Ron asked, “Swimming? Quidditch?”

“We could play some exploding snap,” Ginny suggested. She knew if they played quidditch she wouldn’t be allowed to play. They would try to leave her out again like they normally did. 

“Nah,” Fred said, “How about swimming? You guys have that indoor pool, don’t you Harry? The weather doesn’t look like it’s going to hold out for a game of quidditch.” 

The car slowed to a stop and the group quickly began making their way into the house. They were still discussing what activities they should do first when Cirri and Gus met them at the entrance. 

“Hello everyone!” Gus squeaked at the group, “Cirri and I is here to be showing you to your rooms. Please, follow us.”

The Weasleys all nodded at the elf and followed after him, dragging their trunks along behind them. 

“Master Harry, you is already knowing where your room is. You is welcome to go and unpack!” Cirri said, smiling. 

“Thanks Cirri. I’ll head up there now.”

Harry quickly made his way up to his room and unpacked the clothes from his trunk, putting the dirty robes into his laundry basket before making his way down the hall. 

It didn’t take Harry long to find where each of the Weasleys were staying. Gus had put them all just down the hall from Harry and James. Because they had more than enough space, each of them were given their own spacious room with adjoining bathrooms. Fred and George were especially pleased with this set up as they had never had their own rooms having had to share one with each other at the Burrow their entire lives. 

Pleased to see that everyone was settling in fine, he told them he would find them in the living room when they were done and that he wanted to talk to James before that. 

Harry made his way down to James’ study where he found James working on some papers at his desk. 

“Hey dad?”

James looked up, his glasses sliding down his nose slightly as he moved, “What’s up, Harry?”

“I just, I didn’t know that Ginny was going to be here for Christmas and I haven’t gotten her anything yet. I thought I had some time to find something before the holiday but now…Do you have any suggestions?”

“Well, what does Ginny like? We know she likes quidditch—but I suppose she can’t play much of it at home without anyone else there.”

“She’s not much of a jewelry person, either,” Harry added, “In a perfect world I’d get her some chaser gloves or a broom or something but I don’t want to give her anything she won’t be able to use for several years. I could get her some muggle books? She does love reading those. I don’t know what sort of books she likes, though. I could ask Draco?”

“That’s an idea!” James added as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his mirror, “Give me a sec, Harry. Remus is giving me a call.”

Harry nodded and listened as his dad and uncle talked about the upcoming holiday together. For a moment he reminisced about how lonely Ginny has felt since he and Ron went to Hogwarts in September. It must be hard for her to have to wait for letters to get to her through the post. He wondered briefly how his fathers had managed to make the mirrors they all shared. They must have created them because they made another one for him and then one for Draco. 

As James said goodbye to Remus and put his mirror away, Harry perked up and asked, “Hey, dad? How did you and uncle moony and uncle padfoot make the mirrors?”

James was taken aback for a moment by the sudden question before thinking, replying slowly, “Well,” he started as he placed a hand on his chin, “I believe the idea came from Sirius and I always complaining about having separate detentions and how boring they were. We wanted a way to talk to each other and have fun while doing them. And then one day Moony caught Padfoot staring at himself in this small, square mirror and he commented that it reminded him of a walkie talkie.”

At Harry’s confused look, James continued, “It’s a muggle thing. It’s an electronic box that they can use to communicate on a closed network. Then Peter—” James hesitated for a moment, “Peter—he asked why the mirror couldn’t be a walkie talkie. Of course, Sirius and I thought that was an incredibly stupid idea but Moony, he just got this far away look on his face. A few days later, he came up to us with two small mirrors and we thought it was some kind of joke. We didn’t realize what the mirrors did until later that day when we were joking around and accidentally called each other. Moony said he used a combination of a protean charm and a projection charm. I’m not sure how it works but we can add new mirrors to our network or create new networks. Honestly, Moony was always the brains of that operation.”

“Wow, I didn’t realize so much went into these mirrors. Do you think Uncle Moony would be able to make another?”

James cocked his head, “Why? Who did you want to give it to?”

“Well,” Harry said as he rubbed the back of his neck, “I know Ginny has been really lonely at home since Ron left and Charlie graduated, I thought she might like having a way to talk to all of us at school whenever she wanted. It’s certainly much faster than owl post.”

James looked at Harry for a moment, taking in what his son was saying before responding, “Why don’t you go talk to Remus—he knows how to make the mirrors and I’m sure he would be happy to make one for you. I’m sure she’ll love it. Have you gotten something for Ron, Hermione, and Draco yet?”

Harry smiled, “Yeah! I ordered Ron a copy of Quidditch Through The Ages and a new Chudley Cannons shirt. I was hoping you might be able to get the team to sign it for me? I know you’re playing them this weekend.”

“Yeah I think I can manage that for you. Ron will really enjoy that!” 

“Yeah,” Harry laughed, “And I got Draco some new muggle books and a new, blank journal. He mentioned the other week that his current one is almost full. It’s got all sorts of magical protections on it so that no one but himself can read what’s written in it. And I got Hermione a few books on Wizarding history as well as some new quills and ink. I think they’ll be happy with what I got them, don’t you think?”

“Definitely! Why don’t you head off and spend time with your friends. Remus will be home later tonight and you can talk to him about the mirrors then.”

“Alright. See you later dad!”

~ID~

Draco quietly picked at the food on his plate as he tuned out the voices surrounding him at the large table. He sighed inwardly as he shifted in his seat, the formal robes he was wearing tight around his neck as he twisted. 

It hadn’t taken Draco long to figure out why his father was so insistent on him returning to the Manor for the holiday. The moment he had walked into his childhood home he realized that his grandparents were here for the holidays. Draco had always loathed when his grandparents would visit—he knew it meant being forced into stuffy outfits and allowing his father to flaunt Draco’s abilities and remind him of the traditional pure blood ways. Draco had spent many days and nights at Potter Manor when his grandparents visited while he was younger, avoiding the stiff wandpoint that he had come to learn to fear. 

Abraxas Malfoy is not a warm and loving man. Draco had learned early on in his life that the only way to please Abraxas was to do his best to abide by those pure blood traditions that he had come to question and resent. In many ways Draco thought that Abraxas was worse than his father. In his opinion, Abraxas was quicker to utilize his knowledge of dark magic to gain the upper hand or to get what he wanted no matter who stood between him and his goal. And, often, it was Draco that stood in his way. 

Draco shifted uncomfortably as he noticed the conversation shifting to the ongoing school year and his own progress in his classes. He had been hoping to avoid this topic for the evening, he was disappointed that it had been brought up so quickly in the evening, leaving him feeling bare and unprepared. 

“So, Draco, your father has told me you chose not to follow in our noble houses’ traditions and that you have been erroneously placed into Ravenclaw house rather than Slytherin. Is this true? Or has your father simply been overexaggerating again?” Abraxas asked Draco, his eyes staring lazily down at his plate where he was cutting into the large steak that sat there. Draco could see the red juices swirling around the plate and into the potatoes as he listened. 

Draco’s eyes drifted down to his own plate where he had managed to mix his peas into his own potatoes, his appetite suddenly dissipating, “It’s true that the sorting hat placed me into Ravenclaw, Grandfather.”

Draco winced at the sound of the metal of Abraxas’ knife hitting the oak table as he put it down and speared a chunk of flesh on the end of his fork, “I’m disappointed to hear that you didn’t demand the hat place you into Slytherin, Draco. Disappointed but not surprised. You always were spineless.”

“I’m sorry Grandfather,” Draco protested, “but I didn’t have a choice in the matter. The hat—” 

“I feel,” Abraxas started, the venom dripping from his words, “that you should know by this point in your life, Draco, that you do not take such an insolent tone with your superiors!” 

Draco winced as Abraxas yelled his final word, all pretenses abruptly ending with the utterance of his statement. 

“I apologize, Grandfather. I didn’t mean—”

“You didn’t intend, Draco,” Abraxas corrected, “In this house we use proper grammar. I would hope that you would remember that lesson that I instilled in you so long ago.”

“Yes, Grandfather,” Draco stated as he examined the shape the grain of wood made in the table. 

“Lucius,” Abraxas spat as he rounded on his son, “I was under the impression that you were attempting to instill manners and a sense of purpose and tradition in young Draco here. Why, exactly, has he refused to give the respect I deserve? You sit here and claim your pure blood status while you have an insolent son taking up residence in a less than noble house? I’m not sure who I should be angrier at—Draco for his insolence or you for allowing him to continue on this course?”

Lucius nodded at his father, “I understand, father. I can assure you I have been doing everything in my power to make Draco understand the noble, pure blood ways. I spoke to Dumbledore and tried to have Draco transferred but the old man—he wouldn’t hear of it. The boy refuses to comply with our rules and has been absolutely out of control over the last several years. I beg of you, father, give me your counsel on how to teach Draco that his actions are not appropriate. I fear that he is developing a softness for mudbloods. He carries around with one while at Hogwarts. I have been contemplating removing him from the program and transferring him to Durmstrang.”

“Durmstrang would certainly whip the boy into shape. Is it true, Draco? That you’ve become friends with a mudblood? Has your father taught you nothing about the ways of our people? The necessity of the purity of magical blood? What will you do once the dark lord rises again and calls upon you to join his ranks?”

Run, Draco thought, “I do not know, grandfather. I’m sorry, Grandfather.”

“Draco, you have not answered my question,” Abraxas smiled, his yellowing teeth gleaming in the candlelight.

Draco paled, “I—yes, grandfather, I have been hanging around with a mugg—mudblood. She is friends with my friends.”

Abraxas blinked, taking in Draco’s words. He slowly stood up, his hands resting on the gleaming surface of the dinning table before him as he leaned towards Draco and smiled, “Draco. Please go to your study room. I believe we have a lesson that needs a little more sinking in this evening.”

His mouth dropped open slightly as he looked from his grandfather, to his father, and then to his mother who was sitting stock still, her back straight as she stared straight ahead. He stared at her and his father until he heard the scraping of Abraxas’ chair on the ground. Then, as his entire body shook and his knees felt like liquid, he stood from the table and slowly made his way upstairs. And as he walked, he was painfully, so completely hyper aware of Abraxas walking closely behind him.

~ID~

James stumbled out of the fireplace and onto the carpet inside of the headmaster’s office late that evening. Shortly after dinner, James had received an owl from Dumbledore requesting he come to the school as soon as he could, claiming that he had received more information regarding Voldemort’s potential immortality. 

Once he had cleaned the soot off of himself, James shoved his hands into his pockets and made his way over to the desk at the center of the room where the kindly old man sat, a large basin in front of him as he waited. 

“Evening, Albus.”

“James,” Dumbledore greeted as he gestured to the seat before him, “Thank you for coming on such short notice.”

“Well, you said you had more information about Voldemort. I thought that it would be prudent to get here as fast as I could to discuss it.”

“Yes. I hope you don’t mind, but we will once again have to take a trip into my pensieve. I have received a new memory I feel will be of interest to us. It comes from someone that I think you will recognize once we’re inside. After you, James.”

He watched as Dumbledore poured what seemed to be an extremely congealed, silvery liquid into the basin. It fell into the liquid with a soft plop before sinking beneath the surface. James opened his mouth to protest, to question what was going on and what the rush was. He was still confused as to where these memories came from and how they were going to assist in their research, but Dumbledore continued to wait for him to enter the pensieve. So, he did. 

James felt the familiar rush of liquid as he fell through and into the memory. He watched in fascination as it formed around him and he found himself standing in a familiar looking room where several boys stood around a portly man eating crystalized pineapple out of a tin sitting on his desk. It took James a few moments before he recognized the man sitting at the desk next to him.

“Professor Slughorn?” James whispered to himself.

Dumbledore nodded as the scene began to playout. James watched as Slughorn doted on a young Voldemort, playfully chastising him for knowing more about the school than many of the professors did. Then he watched in fascination as a dark mist engulfed the scene before him and he heard Slughorn shout from inside the dense fog.

“You’ll go wrong boy! Mark my words, you’ll go wrong!” 

“What in the—” James started before Dumbledore held up a hand, silencing him. 

James watched as the boys filed out of Slughorn’s office, leaving himself and Voldemort alone. And watched as the scene became enveloped in the thick fog again, just after Voldemort had asked about Horcruxes. But, despite having yelled at Voldemort mere moments before, the scene changed and showed the pair looking extremely serious but not frazzled or angry. There seemed to be no sign from either person that Slughorn had just been yelling at Voldemort. 

James frowned in confusion over the scene as he looked over at Dumbledore who appeared to be quite at ease with the scene before them. Then he found himself being pulled back out of the pensieve and landed feet first on the floor. 

“What on earth was that?” James asked, “That fog—it’s almost as if Slughorn intentionally altered his memory. But why would he do something like that?”

“It is exactly as if he had altered his memory,” Dumbledore replied, frowning, “I think, and I speak from speculation, not from first-hand knowledge, that Horace was, for some reason, embarrassed or upset about whatever really occurred during that conversation with Lord Voldemort and he is, in his mind, attempting to right some perceived wrong. I don’t feel that I need to emphasize this too much, nor that it necessitates being said out loud, but I shall anyway. We need the real memory. I believe that this memory holds vital information that will lead us to the end of Voldemort forever.”

“Sir, forgive me but I’m just not understanding why this memory in particular is important. We’ve already figured out that he made horcruxes so what does it matter if we learn how he learned about them? What information are you hoping to glean from this memory?”

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and touched the tips of his fingers together and looked over them to examine James. He waited a few moments as he contemplated his response, weighing the options in his mind, before answering.

“I believe that this memory gives an indication on the limits Voldemort believed he could work with and the ones he felt he could push and expand upon.”

“Ex—expand upon?” James spluttered. 

“Yes. But to know what those limits are, we need to find Horace—”

“Wait—find him? What do you mean find him?”

“After I retrieved this altered memory from Horace, he immediately went into hiding from me. He has managed to shield himself from me while also retaining contact with several of his successful, past students. Every time I think I’ve found his location, he slips through my fingers. I have had this memory for some time, you see. Perhaps a year at this time. I had been hoping to retrieve the actual memory before showing it to you, but I’ve come to the conclusion that we won’t be able to get that for some time. My hope is that we can work with what is missing to try to narrow down what may have inspired Voldemort based on that.”

“So it’s a literal guessing game now?”

“It certainly seems that way, doesn’t it?”

James sighed and sat back in his chair as he thought. Considering what the spell and potion required in order to remove a part of your soul and encase it within a horcrux, he couldn’t, at present, fathom how much more Voldemort could have pushed those boundaries. 

~ID~

Ginny dove into the warm water, her hair flowing out behind her as she made strong, swift strokes to propel herself further into the pool. As she burst out of the water she took a deep breath and blinked in the light before turning and swimming to the other end of the pool. 

She had decided to leave the boys to their school work and take some time for herself in the late evening. They had been at Potter Manor for a few days now and as much as she had missed her brothers she was suddenly reminded of how annoying they were when they were around all the time. And though she had craved their company over the last few months, she now suddenly wanted to be alone again, even if just for a few moments. 

Ginny had always loved swimming. The feel of the water around her as it flowed and moved with her powerful strokes and kicks. She had often sought the solitude of the pond at the Burrow. She had even gone so far as to have Mr. Weasley put a warming charm on the water so that she could swim no matter the weather outside. It had served her well over the years and had provided her with a place that felt all her own. 

Once she had done several laps, Ginny simply floated in the middle of the pool, allowing the water to lap around her and to push and pull her wherever it so pleased as she stared into the stary sky. The pool room at the Manor was enclosed all in glass, allowing the swimmer to look out into the sky while they swam. During the evening, the pool was lit under the water with soft, glowing lights, and the pool room had dim lights all around, giving a relaxing and tranquil vibe. And though the pool was technically indoors, it was designed to make the swimmer feel as if they were outside. 

Ginny had immediately fallen in love with the pool room. It had instantly become her favorite room at the Manor and she had begun spending most of her time there regardless of whether she was actually swimming or not. 

As she floated, Ginny suddenly heard a noise outside of the door. It was footsteps making their way toward the room she was sitting in. Ignoring whoever it was, she continued to float in the pool, refusing to allow anyone to ruin her moment. 

Just as she began to wonder who had come into the room, she heard them kick their shoes off and sit at the edge of the pool, putting their legs over the side and into the water. She could feel the waves lap over her body as she continued floating, her eyes closed. 

The person slowly slid into the water, splashing as they slipped in and under. She could feel the vibrations of their arms propelling them forward, toward her. And then, suddenly, she was pulled under the surface, warm water filling her face as she sunk to the bottom of the pool, a strong hand tight around her ankle. 

Ginny kicked out at whoever had grabbed her, her foot colliding with a warm body as she flailed. The person let them go and she kicked to the surface, gasping for air. Then she heard laughing and her stomach flipped inside of her as her heart skipped several beats. Her skin flushed as she turned around and caught sight of those piercing green eyes pouring into hers. She could see the laughter filling those green orbs as she hesitated for only a moment before splashing water into his open mouth. 

Harry spluttered as the saltwater filled his mouth a nose and Ginny burst out into laughter. 

“What are you doing out here?” she asked, “I thought you boys were doing homework or something.”

Harry shrugged and leaned over a pool noodle, “I got bored and realized you’d slunk off somewhere. I figured you’d be in here like you have been nearly every other night.”

“Why did you come looking for me though?”

“I haven’t gotten to spend much time with you this break. Everyone seems to want to be around me and you seemed like you’ve been getting overwhelmed by the number of people here right now. I guess you’re not used to so many people being around anymore, are you?”

Ginny stared into Harry’s eyes, a smile playing at her lips as she felt a sense of happiness and a feeling she couldn’t quite place washing over her, “Yeah. I guess I got so used to things at home just being me, mum, and dad I forgot how busy it is when everyone is together again. I missed you all so much but—apparently I value my alone time just as much.”

Harry frowned, “Was I interrupting your alone time? I didn’t mean to.”

She shook her head, “No. No, you didn’t. Well, I mean, you did, but you didn’t,” at his confusion she continued, “I was having alone time, but you weren’t interrupting because I don’t mind if you interrupt my alone time.”

Harry furrowed his brow, “What do you mean?”

Blushing, she continued, “I mean, I like your company, so you wouldn’t ever be interrupting.”

“Oh,” Harry said, still confused, “Alright then. If you say so. Anyway, want to race? I’m pretty good at swimming. And I’m fast, too.”

“Ha! You’d never outrace me. I’ve been training for years.”

Harry grinned wickedly, “Want to bet on it?”

Ginny raised an eyebrow, “What sort of bet?”

“Whatever you want,” Harry shrugged, “or we can use my idea. That is, if you’re not scared.”

“Bring it on, Potter.”

“Winner gets to choose an outfit for the loser to wear for the entire day Christmas day.”

“Anything?” Ginny asked, her interest peaking. 

“Anything.”

“So, if I picked out a dress for you?”

“If I lost, I’d wear it.”

Ginny grinned wickedly as the ideas filled her head. Then she nodded, “You’re on. I hope you’re ready to lose to a girl.”

“As if I’d lose to you! You’re so much smaller than me.”

“Sometimes being small has its advantages,” Ginny said as she winked at Harry. 

Harry gave her a coy smile before making his way to the edge of the pool, preparing himself, “We’ll do one lap. Swim from here to the other end, flip, and swim back. First one back wins.”

“And how will we know who’s won if it’s close?”

Harry simply patted the edge of the pool and smiled, “This will tell us.”

Ginny frowned, “What do you mean?”

“My dad charmed the pool to announce a winner. Trust me, it works. Alright, on my mark?”

Ginny nodded.

“Ready. Set. Go!”

They both kicked off the side of the pool, speeding forward and cutting through the water. Harry had a strong kick off, but Ginny’s expert strokes more than made up for that difference in power. She was indeed correct that her size assisted her in swimming quickly through the water because there was less of her to offer as resistance to the water, allowing her to move forward quicker. It also helped that she had strong, efficient strokes while Harry was still clearly inexperienced at racing. 

Ginny beat Harry to the edge of the pool, quickly flipping in the water and kicking off before he reached the edge. She swam quickly back to the other side, leaving Harry several feet behind her. In the end, she beat him back by nearly an entire body length. 

“No way!” Harry protested, his mouth open, “You total cheated!”

“Did not!” Ginny argued, “You’re just upset because you lost to a girl.”

“No. I don’t care if I lose to you. I’m just upset that the princess of chaos gets to pick out my Christmas outfit.”

“The princess of chaos?” Ginny asked, a blush working its way up her body as she willed it to stop.

“Yeah. I mean, that’s what you are. You’re spunky and surprising, intelligent and pretty. A real princess of chaos.”

“I like that. Princess of chaos.”

“Yeah, well, any idea what you’re going to make me wear?” Harry asked nervously.

“Maybe I won’t have you wear anything at all,” Ginny replied.

Harry sighed in relief, “I mean, you don’t have to take your reward.”

“You misunderstand,” Ginny replied, an evil grin on her face, “I might not have you wear anything. As in, starkers. Naked. Bare-bummed for the world.”

Harry paled, “You wouldn’t.”

“I guess you’ll have to wait and see, won’t you?” Ginny said as she dove back into the water and swam away, leaving a stunned Harry in her wake. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	45. Chapter Forty-Five: Yule Tide Casualties

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! Sorry this update is so late and it’s not nearly as long as it would normally be. My wedding is literally tomorrow and then we go on our honeymoon and I’ve been so busy. But! I didn’t want to not give you guys an update. This means I need to apologize in advance to Midnitewanderer for what I’m about to do in this chapter. Please forgive me!

Beer of the week: Founder’s Rubeus. This is a raspberry ale that is absolutely phenomenal! It literally tastes like Founders juiced raspberries and then fermented them and put it into a bottle. It’s smooth and deep and rich with a subtle sweetness to it. Definitely check it out!

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: Sorry! I know you hate cliffhangers but it needed to move to another scene. I promise I pick it up this chapter! Fl4v1nh4: Glad you liked the chapter! Bankerrtx01: Oh I have so many plans for Miss Ginny Weasley. Smallwjl: I definitely drew inspiration for him from Bree’s “A Second Chance”. I definitely think that Lucy’s parents would have been super pure blood and super overbearing for the family to be the way they are. I don’t want my Abraxas to be too similar to ASC but I definitely got inspiration there. Potter671: You’ll have to wait and see! I have fun plans for the Yule ball. Nightwing2013: I’m so glad you’ve loved my story thus far! I really enjoyed getting your continual reviews over the last few days. They’ve been entertaining and uplifting! 

Thank you everyone for understanding my belated updating schedule. I promise to be back to normal soon!

Posting Schedule: Once a week.

Chapter Forty-Five: Yule Tide Casualties

Draco looked up at the blue walls that surrounded him in the small drawing room he had been confined to since the evening before. He sighed as he rubbed the bandages on his legs, they were tight and felt like they were cutting off his circulation. He wondered briefly how long it would be until they finally sent an elf with some food for him. He hadn’t had any since dinner the night before and even then he hadn’t actually eaten much. He wished that he’d eaten more. 

As he sat and stared at the walls, Draco could recall vividly the events of the prior evening. His grandfather had been most unhappy with what he perceived as Draco’s decisions and actions from the last few months of his life. And Abraxas had made his displeasure clear despite protests from his mother and, surprisingly, father. His father had objected to the severity of Abraxas’ discipline, claiming that he should be the one who dispenses any punishment upon Draco. His mother had objected to any discipline. She argued that Draco being sorted into Ravenclaw was hardly his fault and he didn’t deserve punishment for the decisions of a centuries old hat. His grandfather hadn’t bought either argument. At least the punishment hadn’t been quiet as severe as he had anticipated. 

Draco recalled the pain he had felt when Abraxas had used the curse on him. The way it felt when his bones seemed to break and crack inside of him. It felt like his arms and legs were twisting in ways they weren’t supposed to—it was pain beyond anything he had ever felt. the pain had seemed to go on for ages. He remembered wishing that it would stop. But, in reality, it had only been a few seconds, a minute at most. And when it was over he had fallen to the floor and landed on the shard remnants of a glass that he had errantly knocked over during the curse. The glass had torn open the flesh on his leg, causing him to bleed profusely on the carpet. He glanced over at the spot on the floor where his blood still shone crimson against the white carpet. He suddenly felt nauseous. 

Once his leg had been cut open his mother had tended the wound herself. Father had refused to allow her to use magic, claiming that the resulting scar would be a living reminder of what happens when Draco fails to comply to uphold the Malfoy name. Then his mother had insisted that he be locked in this room to have some time to reflect on the previous months. Draco had been silently grateful for his mother’s insight and forethought to demand this punishment as it allowed Draco to avoid his grandfather’s wrath. But as his stomach growled Draco wasn’t so sure that it was as good of an idea as he had originally thought it was. 

As he sat he carefully thumbed the square outline of the mirror in his pocket. He had managed to keep it concealed from his family because they were unaware of what the mirror really was. He had contemplated calling Sirius or James but he knew someone would come into the room any minute he couldn’t dare risk anyone at his house discovering the secret of the mirror. 

Now he was tired. So very tired. 

Draco woke sometime later, his stomach aching from hunger and his eyes bleary as he blinked in the dim evening light. For a moment he wasn’t sure what had woken him. All seemed quiet and still in the dying light but he knew something must have stirred him. Then he heard the noise again and turned his head. There were keys rattling on the other side of the door. Then he heard the lock turn. 

~ID~

Harry, Ginny, and Ron found themselves sitting in the living room watching some muggle films the day before Christmas. The weather had been especially poor that day as sleet and wet snow poured down over Potter Manor. They had lit a fire in the hearth across from them to keep the room warmer while they sat on the couch under a massive pile of blankets. 

Ginny had long since fallen asleep and slid sideways, her head laying on Harry’s thigh as she breathed deeply, snuggled under a fluffy blanket. Harry glanced down at her and smiled as he noticed some of her hair had fallen in her face. Seeing her sleeping like this reminded him of when he met her and how young she had been then. Sleep seemed to make her look younger. 

“So, muggles just watch these things all the time?” Ron asked as he looked at the TV.

“Yeah,” Harry replied as he carefully swept the few tendrils of hair out of Ginny’s face. Her nose scrunched as the hair tickled her and then she relaxed again, “Muggles watch movies all the time. They also watch cable television which is, like, shorter pieces of longer movies. Sometimes they go to movie theaters where they watch new movies on this huge screen in the dark with these special chairs and popcorn and soda.”

“Really? They’re so cool. How many movies are there? There can’t be that many, right?”

Harry laughed, “Hundreds. Thousands, I expect. Why?”

Ron shrugged, “Dunno. Why hasn’t Hermione mentioned these?”

“Why would she? I expect she’s used to them like I am. There’s lots of muggle things we don’t tell you about because we don’t think about it. Like, I don’t know, Walkmans.”

“What’s a Walkman?” 

“It’s like a small, portable radio that also plays music that you put into it.”

Ron frowned, visibly confused. 

“Don’t worry about it. Hey, how long do you think she’s going to sleep like this?”

Ron glanced down at Ginny and shrugged, “I don’t know. Gin-Gin has this weird ability to sleep soundly everywhere. Could be a few minutes or a few hours.”

“Should—should I just stay here?”

“Up to you, mate. Careful, she’ll start drooling soon.”

Harry frowned and glanced down at Ginny’s sleeping form, “Very funny,” he mumbled. 

“Butterfly…chicken fingers…puppies, please,” Ginny mumbled in her sleep. 

Harry jumped at the noise, and, thinking Ginny had woken up, moved slightly so she could sit up. Ginny’s head fell the few inches to the couch, causing her to abruptly wake up.

“Huh? What? What’s going on?” Ginny asked, her voice slurring with sleep. 

“You fell asleep Gin-Gin.”

“No I didn’t,” Ginny argued.

“You definitely did,” Harry countered, “And I should know as it was my leg you were laying on.” 

Now fully awake, Ginny blushed in realization of what happened. Her cheeks turned a deep shade of red as she averted her eyes. 

Harry looked away and ran his fingers through his hair, “Hey, why don’t we go see if we can nick some food from Cirri? I bet she’d let us have some treacle tart while dinner is finishing up.”

“That sounds like a plan to me! I’m starving!” Ron said as he jumped up from the couch and made his way out of the room. 

Harry and Ginny quickly jumped up and followed behind him. 

“No, no that’s fine. Yes, I won’t mention it to the kids.”

As the trio approached the kitchen they could hear someone talking.

“Who’s that?” Ginny asked.

“Sounds like Uncle Moony,” Harry replied.

“Yes, we’re looking forward to it. Ok, see you then,” Remus said. 

The three of them entered the kitchen and found Remus talking to someone on the phone. Harry made his way to the kitchen island and took a seat as he nicked a square of treacle tart from the plate as he sat and turned to look at Remus. He noticed that Remus paled when he caught sight of Harry and turned his back to Harry and spoke more softly. 

“Yes. Yes that sounds fine. I have to go now. Yes. Goodbye,” Remus quickly hung up the phone and turned toward the children and smiled, “Hi kids. What have you been up to?”

Ron shrugged and grabbed an apple, “Harry showed us some muggle movies. Have you ever watched any of those? They’re pretty weird, aren’t they?”

“Well I liked them,” Ginny said. 

“What do you plan to do the rest of the evening?”

Harry shrugged, “Not sure. Maybe we’ll play some muggle board games or go swimming again. We were hoping dinner would be ready soon?”

“It should be. I think Cirri was making a roast. Whatever it is it smells delicious.”

“Who were you just talking to, Uncle Moony?”

“Ah, I was just talking to an acquaintance about a new rune text that was found out in the Ukraine. I’m having a copy sent to me by owl this week so I can review it.”

“But you said you would see the person,” Ginny commented.

Remus frowned, “Yes, I did. They’re going to be visiting week after next. Why don’t you three go find something constructive to do while wait for dinner to finish up.”

The three of them nodded as they watched Remus leave the kitchen. They all looked at each other, confused.

“I wonder what he’s up to,” Ron commented.

Ginny shrugged, “Dunno. But I bet we find out soon.”

“Hey, should we go do some of that research in the library? See if we can turn anything up on Flamel?” Harry asked Ron quietly.

“What’s Flamel?” 

“Butt out,” Ron snapped at Ginny.

Harry lightly punched Ron on the shoulder and scowled before turning to Ginny, “We don’t know who he is. Apparently he has something to do with whatever that Cerberus is guarding at Hogwarts.”

Harry quickly filled Ginny in on what’s happened since he last wrote to her about the mystery of the Cerberus. Elaborating in detail on his brush with death during his quidditch match and his subsequent conversation with Hagrid. 

“He tried to kill you? Over, what, a petty childhood rivalry?” Ginny nearly yelled, her eyes mimicking the fire that was her hair. Harry could have sworn he felt the heat of a fire radiating around her. 

“Yeah, so we’ve been researching him of late. We haven’t found anything detailing what he’s done. We’ve looked into everything regarding modern magical accomplishments and—nothing.”

“Why are you limiting yourself to modern magical accomplishments? Who’s to say that he didn’t create or invent something or write some book back in the, I don’t know, 12th century, and Dumbledore found it and is keeping it safe?”

Harry frowned, they hadn’t thought of that idea, “Well, the way Hagrid said it made it sound like Dumbledore knows Flamel personally. Wouldn’t he have to be more recent?”

“Maybe this Flamel is a descendant of the Flamel who’s whatever-it-is is being housed at Hogwarts? I mean, the pureblood families have had their names for centuries, haven’t we?”

Harry and Ron exchanged a shocked look with one another. It hadn’t occurred to any of them that that was a possibility. Was it possible that the object, whatever it may be, was created by an ancestor of the current Flamel? Surely that makes sense, is at least possible, right?

~ID~

It only took Ron, Ginny, and Harry an hour to find a book in the Potter library about Nicolas Flamel. They discovered that he was a living, 600-something year old alchemist. They also discovered that he was the only known inventor of the Philosopher’s Stone. 

In their research the trio discovered that the Philosopher’s Stone is the only known object capable of creating the elixir of life and transmutation. Apparently the stone could be used to transmutate any metal into solid gold. It’s transmuting abilities alone made this stone invaluable but the addition of the elixir of life—none of them could verbalize how priceless, and dangerous, this stone was. Harry especially immediately understood the implications of the stone. 

This discovery was wholly exciting to the trio and they contemplated how they would be able to communicate this discovery with Hermione and Draco. Harry had already attempted to use his mirror to contact Draco and was concerned by the fact that Draco didn’t answer his call. James had been slightly concerned by that news but not overly so. He had expected that Draco wouldn’t be able to contact them as much or as often as they had grown accustomed to while he was secluded at Malfoy Manor. James expected they would hear from Draco just as soon as the boy was able to get away for a few minutes. Until then they would have to assume that he was otherwise alright and safe. 

It was later that evening, after the children went to bed, that James, Sirius, and Remus met together in the living room.

“Ok, so, I met with Dumbledore the other night,” James began as he took a swig of his beer. 

Remus practically choked on his beer in shock as Sirius replied, “What happened? You didn’t tell us that you had planned another meeting.”

“Well, it wasn’t really planned. It was last minute. I got his owl and left right away. Everything has been so busy the last few days that I haven’t had a chance to talk to you two yet. We watched another memory and it was certainly weird. I’m just—I’m starting to really question what the purpose of these memories are. How are these disconnected memories going to help us find the horcrux?”

“I understand what you’re saying about wondering how these memories will help. It’s certainly interesting and enlightening to learn about the young Voldemort, but I’m also not sure how they help with discovery of the location of the horcrux. Let’s go over the information we have so far. What was this most recent memory about?” Remus replied thoughtfully. 

“There were Dumbledore’s memories about telling Moldy about him being a wizard and then Moldy trying to get the DADA post at Hogwarts,” Sirius offered.

“Moldy?” Remus asked, confused and slightly amused. 

“Yeah. Moldy. Like Moldyshorts. Sounds like Voldemort but funnier and more accurate.”

“Moldysho—you, you’re mocking the darkest and most dangerous wizard in history?” Remus spluttered.

Sirius shrugged, “He’s not dangerous now, is he? So, yes, I mock the Dark Lord.”

“Moldyshorts aside—” James started, “Yes, those are two of the memories. There was also the memory about Moldy’s mother, Merope. And the one about the lady with the two founders objects.”

“Yes. I’m not sure why those were important. As potential horcrux objects? We know from the young Moldy memory that he enjoyed collecting trophies. He would have seen the cup and the locket as trophies to be collected. Maybe he used one of them,” Sirius added thoughtfully.

“That’s exactly what I was suspecting,” Remus said, “Perhaps he used Slytherin’s Locket. It’s a family heirloom and he probably felt that he was entitled to ownership of the object.”

“He also took the Peverell family ring. Which irks me because my family should have received that object as we’re the only other living Peverell descendants left,” James added.

“You’re related to the Peverells?” Sirius asked, surprised.

“Distantly. Ignotus, I think? I’m not sure. We still have his invisibility cloak in the family. The one we used when we were kids in school. Actually, I’m giving Harry the cloak this year for Christmas. He’ll make use of it, I’m sure.”

“Anyway,” Remus interjected, “So we know of three potential objects that could have been used to make the horcrux. But do we have any ideas where Moldy—Voldemort—may have hidden it?”

“What about his old orphanage?” Sirius asked.

“Come off it—he hated that place and, on top of that, it was a muggle orphanage. Do you think he would carelessly hide a bit of his soul in a place he detested so much where a muggle might accidentally tamper with it?” James asked. 

“No, I suppose not. Well, what about Hogwarts, then? It sounds like that was really the only place he ever enjoyed being at. Or Borgin and Burkes?” 

“I can’t see Borgin and Burkes,” Remus commented, “Hogwarts is an interesting notion though. But when would he have been able to put the horcrux there? It’s too well guarded.”

“Maybe before or after his meeting with Dumbledore?” James suggested.

“Has anyone been back to the Riddle house? I wonder if he went back and put one there as, like, a final fuck you,” Sirius pondered. 

“Now that’s a thought,” James said, “I don’t know if Dumbledore went and checked there. I can ask him and, if he hasn’t, maybe we can take a trip over to Little Hangleton after the new year. If it’s there, it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.”

“That sounds like a plan. How, exactly, do we destroy a horcrux?” Remus asked.

James opened his mouth to answer and then closed it again, frowning, “I’m not sure. We didn’t have any books on horcruxes here in the library. And there aren’t any in the school library. I wouldn’t even know where to find any information about horcruxes outside of the documents we found.”

Sirius paled as he sat quiet and still, dreading wha the would have to say next, “The Black Library at Grimmauld Place would probably have books about horcruxes,” he whispered, barely audible to the two men sitting around him.

James and Remus’ heads both snapped up to look at Sirius, their expressions a mixture of confusion and shock.

“You knew that? Why didn’t you tell us when we were researching them?” Remus asked quietly.

Sirius shrugged, “I didn’t own the house yet and thought I never would. And Walburga wouldn’t have ever let me into the house to get some books. It didn’t seem worth the time when we would have left emptyhanded anyway. But now I do and, well, I can go in whenever I want, I suppose.”

“Are you sure you’re ready to go back?” James asked softly.

“I’ll have to be, won’t I? We need those books to keep Harry safe. We can go in the new year. Before looking in Little Hangleton.”

James and Remus nodded their assent, both weary of what may happen if they allowed Sirius to return to Grimmauld Place right now, after everything that had happened. But they both knew they needed to go, they needed the information. 

There was a sudden, sharp rap at the front door to the Manor, echoed through the Manor through an extension charm, causing all three men to jump in alarm.

“Who could that be?” Remus asked.

“I don’t know,” James replied, worried, “Whoever they are, they didn’t trigger any of my alarms. There’re very few people who are allowed on the property without doing so. The majority of them are already here.”

“Who else is on the list?” Sirius asked, slowly, already knowing the answer. 

The realization hit all three of them in the same moment as they jumped to their feet and raced to the entryway, all of them fearful as to the state they would find him in. Sirius dreading the worst, imagining dark red blood dripping off of the golden hair and down his pale skin. 

Sirius reached the door first. He had always been the fastest of the three when in their human forms and he knew the house nearly as well as James did. He had known exactly where he could jump the railing from the stairs to make his descent quicker. He flung the door open, the dark sky a raging and terrifying backdrop to the boy swaying before him. He watched in fear as Draco stumbled over the threshold and fell into Remus’ outstretched arms, his face grey and tired. 

Sirius watched in horror as James and Remus carried Draco to the closest couch so they could examine him. Sirius was doing everything in his power to keep the memories and thoughts at bay as he watched the scene unfold in front of him. It took everything Sirius had to walk the few steps to where Draco was lying and fall to his knees, he took Draco’s limp hand in his, and held tight, as if Sirius were Draco’s only tether to the living world.


	46. Chapter Forty-Six: A Very Marauder Christmas

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I’m so sorry for the late/missing update. My husband and I got married on the 23rd (our official wedding) and then went on our honeymoon. We only just got back on Friday and our house was an absolute wreck. I’m talking, like, we still aren’t done cleaning. Anyway. The wedding was absolutely amazing. It was perfect and beautiful and the HP accents were just phenomenal. All the planning paid off and we had little issues. I think my most memorable part was our first dance. My husband surprised me with the song because I couldn’t choose. He ended up choosing “The One” by Kodaline. Our secondary “first song” which we danced to later in the evening was “There She Is” by Frank Turner. 

For our honeymoon we went to HP world in Orlando and Disney! It was so fantastic. I literally cried when I walked into Diagon alley. Literally cried. It was everything I imagined and more. Don’t worry, we were safe and careful during our trip and Universal handled the pandemic like a champ. We felt very safe while there. 

Beer of the Week: Nuttercup from Brew Link Brewing Company. This is a Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter that was absolutely perfect. It was heavy on the peanut butter and lighter on the chocolate which gave this beer a sweeter and more full-bodied flavor. It was robust and smooth but I felt it wasn’t quite dark enough in color for a porter. I guess if my only complaint is color then this beer was stellar. 

Reviews: Iwik: It’s not my intention to paint Lucy as a good father. I certainly never thought of him as one. Narcissa, however, I do think is trying to do the best she can do without getting herself killed. She understands the danger to her life, and Draco’s, is real and she’s doing her best to keep Draco safe, loved, and happy while balancing the bad on the other end. I’m sorry I’m not doing this as well as you had hoped. I’m glad you like Ginny’s addition! Midnitewanderer: I’m sorry to say I don’t really address how Draco got away this chapter. I do, however, elude to it. that’s something that will be more important in the future and will be brought back up. I guess you’ll have to wait and see on the Hinny front! I’ll definitely have to look into that story. I’ll add it to my list. Hope you enjoy this update!

Potter671: I’ve always loved Draco as a character, even in Joanne’s telling. He’s so…complicated. Such a blank slate that, but for the catalyst in the 5/6th book arch, could have been an extremely different person and I love reimagining him. I’m so glad that you’re enjoying my retelling! Smallwjl: I can assure you that there will be a confrontation there, but a full battle won’t be for a very long time. I’m definitely looking forward to some Sirius/Abraxas beatdown though. Fhl1234: Thank you! And thank you for reading! Miniandminie: I’m so glad that you’re enjoying my story! I hope that you continue to enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it! BashForFUN: Thank you! 

Thank you everyone who has been a loyal reader for so many chapters now. I’m so excited to announce that we’ve reached 200 reviews! This is absolutely amazing and just so surreal for me! You are all absolutely amazing and remind me every day why I love writing this story so much. You all, those that just read and those that read and review, are the reason I continue to love writing my story. Thank you so much! Here’s to 100 more reviews!

Posting Schedule: Once A Week

Make sure to drop a review! Your reviews remind me why I continue to write! I love you all.

Chapter Forty-Six: A Very Marauder Christmas

Harry shot up in bed, startled by a sharp rap on his door. He wondered what time it was as he looked around his room, the darkness was nearly impenetrable so he assumed it was still rather late. He reached out carefully to grab his glasses of the side table next to his bed just as he heard the rapping again, this time more fervently. 

“I’m coming,” he mumbled as he swung his legs out of the bed. Next to him, he heard a small rustle as Cocoa poked her head out from under the covers, her smushed face upset at the disturbance in her sleep. 

Harry sighed and padded over to his bedroom door, carefully opening it and peeking out of the crack. 

Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George all pushed their way into Harry’s room, bowling him over in their haste to get through the door and close it before alerting anyone to their nighttime wanderings. 

“Bloody hell!” Harry moaned as he lay flat on his floor. The room had been plunged into darkness once again as he lay there, his arm over his eyes. 

The lights in his room suddenly burst on, nearly blinding him as he continued to lay sprawled on the floor. 

“Oy, get up you lazy prat,” Fred said as he yanked Harry to his feet.

“Didn’t you hear the commotion downstairs?” George asked as he straightened Harry’s night clothes.

“It was loud. Even Ginny and I heard it and we’re at the end of the hall,” Ron added, his eyes wide. 

Ginny nodded in agreement, “I heard a lot of shouting. I tried to peek down the stairwell but I couldn’t see anything.”

Harry shook his head, his brow furrowing, “I didn’t hear anything. I’ve always been a pretty sound sleeper though. It’s hard to wake me up. Who was shouting?”

“It sounded like James, Lupin, and Sirius,” Fred commented. 

Harry noticed Fred’s use of Remus’ sir name but opted not to comment on it. He knew how hard it could be to change how you say someone’s name and he was pretty sure Fred had taken Ancient Runes with Remus. 

“What were they shouting about?” Harry asked quickly.

“Something about ‘Had anyone heard from him?’ and ‘What in the world’. I’m not sure what—I’m not sure who they were talking about,” Ginny said quietly, her voice distant, almost as if she were speaking from somewhere far away.

“Are you ok, Ginny?” Harry asked.

She glanced up at him, her deep eyes unfocused and distant for just a moment before clearing, “Yeah. I was just—thinking I suppose.”

Just as Harry tried to respond, Ron interrupted them, “Should we find out what’s going on? It must be important if they were down there shouting. I mean, really, they woke the whole house up!” 

“Cirri—Cirri can you come here?” Harry called.

The group jumped when there was a loud crack and the small elf appeared with a frown on her face as she turned her large, glassy eyes onto Harry, “Master Harry! What is you needing this late in the evening? Isn’t you children supposed to be in bed? You is needing to go back to sleep!”

Harry shushed Cirri and waived his hands in the air, “Cirri, be quiet, I don’t want dad to hear you. We woke up because everyone heard shouting downstairs. Do you know what’s going on?”

Cirri frowned and fidgeted where she stood, her eyes darting to the face of each of the children before her, “I is not saying, Master Harry. Master James is telling me I is not saying to anyone yet. They is treating him, sir.”

“Him?” Ginny asked, her face white.

“I’m sorry, I is saying too much,” Cirri said, bowing her head. Then, suddenly, there was a loud crack and Cirri was gone.

“Him?” Ginny repeated as she looked around the room at her brothers and Harry, “Him? Who’s him?”

Ginny’s head whipped around to look at each of them, her eyes pleading and scared. The boys simply looked confused and dumbfounded. None of them had any idea who the elf had been talking about. 

“Well,” Fred started as he looked at George.

“Let’s go investigate,” they said simultaneously as they looked at one another. 

Ron, Ginny, and Harry all exchanged worrisome looks as Fred and George made their way quietly out of Harry’s bedroom door. The three of them quickly followed Fred and George, not wanting to be left behind.

The five of them snuck from doorway to doorway as they worked their way toward the staircase landing, each of them taking their turn peeking their head out from the doorway to make sure the coast was clear. After the second door, they began making a game of it. Each time they made it to a doorway each person had to get into the room in some fun or interesting fashion. George had started the game by tucking and rolling into the room and springing up to his feet, his hand holding an imaginary wand that he used to scan around the room. This was met with enthusiastic and silent laughter from the group. Ginny had such a hard time trying to stay silent that she began to clap her hands and cry at the same time. By the time they reached the landing, each child was attempting to outdo the others. This culminated in Ron and Ginny coordinating for their final entrance with Ginny on Ron’s shoulders so she could attempt to do a flip off of him. Harry burst out laughing when she landed on her bum. Her face was so shocked and bemused that she must have believed her improper landing was all Ron’s fault. 

Fred quickly helped Ginny get back to her feet just in time for the group to hide behind the wall next to the staircase before Remus walked—no, ran past. They waited quietly, making sure that no one else was going to run past the stairs before whispering to each other. 

“What the bloody hell is going on?” Ron whispered, “I’ve never seen Remus run before.”

“Something bad, I think,” Ginny replied quietly from Ron’s side. 

Harry stood up straight, his anger getting the best of him, “Let’s go find out. Something’s happening in my house but I haven’t been told what. Come on.”

Harry strode confidently down the grand staircase, his green eyes bright with excitement and anger as he went. The others hesitated for a moment before following him. None of them had seen Harry this angry in a long time.

As they stepped out into the entryway the five of them stopped in shock as they took in the situation at hand. Harry’s eyes widened in fear as he took in the pale figure lying on the chez near the front entry. 

Ginny grabbed Harry’s arm, her fingers digging into his skin as she stared and whispered, “Draco.”

~ID~

Draco was feebly stirring on the chez. He could see through his eyelids that it was brightly lit wherever he was. He could also hear the loud commotion that was taking place all around him. He wondered silently what was causing such a ruckus. 

He was so tired. 

He was so hungry.

Draco’s stomach gurgled again. He silently recalled how he hadn’t eaten since that dinner with his grandfather. He recalled when his mother had attempted to get food to him, unsuccessfully, and how she had been disciplined as a result of her indiscretion. Grandfather had not been happy with that act of “insolence”. 

Draco wondered if he would be allowed to sleep longer. He was so tired and his body hurt so much. This couch was soft. As he cuddled into the warmth more, he could feel something warm laying on his forehead. He wondered briefly what that could be. It felt wet—maybe it was blood? That would explain why he felt so tired, so lightheaded. 

He could hear people talking—it was almost as if he were floating in some kind of dream. 

“What are you kids doing up?” an irate man asked. 

Why did that voice sound so familiar? Did he know this person? 

“Why didn’t you tell us Draco was here? Is he ok?” an angry sounding boy shouted, “He looks so pale…”

Harry? Could that really be Harry? Did he manage to get to the Potters? The last thing he remembered was sitting in the chair in the locked room at Malfoy Manor. How would he have gotten to Potter Manor? They were halfway across the country from one another. 

He could vaguely hear people conversing around him. He could hear yelling and muffled crying. Why was someone crying? Wait, was that a dog? 

Draco couldn’t stand the unknown any longer. Even though he was so exhausted he managed to crack his eyes open. Just enough that he could see who was standing around him. He could see a load of people with red hair, three with black hair, and one with bronze hair surrounding him. It was nearly suffocating. So far, none of them had noticed that he had opened his eyes, that he was aware of what was going on around him.

“You shouldn’t be down here—why are you five even out of bed?” James snapped at the group.

“We heard shouting,” Fred piped up, “We were concerned for our safety.”

“Bullocks,” Sirius said, “If you heard shouting you should have stayed in your beds.”

“You should have come to get us when our friend showed up, half dead, on the doorstep!” Harry yelled at his fathers.

“No,” James snapped, “You do not get to speak with me that way. You’re angry, but you have no right to talk back to me like that and if I ever hear you speaking that way again, we’re going to have a long talk. 

“We didn’t want to worry any of you until we knew what was going on. We still don’t know what’s going on and now the five of you are getting in the way.”

Draco watched as Harry crossed his arms and begrudgingly asked James, “Will he be ok?”

James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, “We aren’t sure what’s wrong with him yet. If he doesn’t wake up soon we’re going to have to take him to St. Mungos. It could be any—oh god,” James had just now noticed the grey eyes staring unblinkingly at him from the couch, “Draco! Draco are you ok?”

James rushed to Draco’s side, his arms engulfing him as he spoke. Ginny’s mouth dropped open at this development and she too rushed to Draco’s side, her hand sliding into his as she watched him carefully. 

Draco opened his mouth and tried to speak—nothing but dry air was able to escape his lips. He only just now registered exactly how dehydrated he was. He carefully licked his cracked lips with his dry tongue. Somehow, that only made the dry sensation worse. 

Realizing the problem, Ginny’s eyes widened as she turned to Sirius who was crouching beside her, “He’s thirsty. I don’t think he’s had anything to drink in ages. Someone get him some water!” 

Ron jumped up and ran out of the room and toward the kitchen in an effort to get some water for Draco. While he did that, James calmly conjured a cup and poured water from his wand into it and tipped the contents into Draco’s mouth. He dank greedily, feeling like he was unable to get enough into his body. He had quickly guzzled the contents of the first cup, just in time for Ron to return with another glass. Draco greedily drank this second cup as well. Once he was done, everyone could see he had regained a substantial amount of color in his face. 

Draco coughed and spluttered as he tried to sit up. All that liquid at once was hitting him, and not in a good way. He half sat up as he spluttered, James supported him and slapped his hand on Draco’s back in an effort to help him. 

“You good, Draco? What happened?” 

“You can’t just show up on the doorstep, looking like death, basically die in our arms, and then not tell us what happened,” Sirius added dramatically. 

Draco’s voice came out in a rasp, as if he hadn’t used his voice in several days, maybe even a week, “I—my grandfather came to visit for the holiday.”

Sirius frowned, “Not from your mother’s side, right? My uncle died years ago.”

“Yes. Abraxas Malfoy. He’s—not the nicest person.”

“I remember him,” Remus said, frowning, “Wasn’t he a Voldemort supporter during the war?”

The five Weasley children shuttered as Draco continued, “Yeah. He’s supportive of the old, pureblood ways. He—he wasn’t happy that I was sorted into Ravenclaw. He made his displeasure known. I—they locked me in my classroom at home to discipline me. Mother tried to give me food but—”

Draco continued to explain what had happened when his mother had been caught trying to feed him while he was supposed to be locked away and how he had been too afraid to use his mirror on the off chance that that would be the moment someone decided to enter the room to check on him. 

“I don’t know how I got here. The last thing I remember was wishing I could get away. And then I was on your doorstep and everything was black.”

Sirius’ eyes hardened, dark and stormy, “So, what you’re saying is, you hadn’t had anything to eat or drink since, what, the night the train dropped you off until now?”

Draco nodded solemnly.

“Of course not. Why would Lucy Malfoy think that children need fed?” Sirius muttered to himself darkly. 

“Come on,” James said as he helped Draco sit up, “We’ll get you some soup and some toast for the night and then in the morning we can discuss what to do with you.”

Harry’s head snapped up, “What do you mean, ‘what to do with you’? You’re not seriously thinking of sending him back to that sodding bast—” 

“Language!” James snapped, “Just because he’s one of those doesn’t mean you need to say it. And, as much as I don’t want to, yes, I am. Unfortunately, Lucy is Draco’s parent and has rights that we aren’t allowed to interfere with without permission from the Ministry. And that kind of permission takes time. He very well might have to return to Malfoy Manor in the morning. I’m going to guess that Draco managed to do some underaged magic to bring himself here, too, and his parents are already aware of that and are probably looking for him.”

“What? We can’t report the fact that they were starving him? They nearly killed him!” Harry shouted, “The Ministry isn’t going to find that to be significant in any way?”

“Yes, they probably would. But the Malfoys are also an old, pureblood family and often those sorts of families have longstanding traditions that the Ministry won’t go against.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Harry said slowly, “Even if a family is severely abusing a child, if they’re pureblood and they can show some archaic family rule or whatever to support their actions, the Ministry won’t help those kids? They won’t step in and make the parents stop? How is that right?”

“It isn’t,” Sirius said darkly, “And it needs to change. You’re right, Harry, it is archaic and it’s dangerous. It wasn’t that long ago when children would die because of this belief. It’s only worst today because now it happens behind closed doors and is still sanctioned by the Ministry so no one knows it’s happening. And no one talks about it.”

“How do we change it?” Harry asked.

“What do you mean?”

“How do we change it? How do we force the Ministry to take all kinds of abuse, pureblood beliefs included, seriously and create sanctions against it.”

“Well,” Sirius started slowly as he thought, “We would probably have to present new legislation—and then the Wizengamot would have to vote it into law. It could be done—but the majority of the Wizengamot is made up of pureblood families so it probably wouldn’t pass.”

“Does that mean you won’t try?”

Sirius looked at James, the grey eyes meeting the hazel, “No, it doesn’t.”

~ID~

Nobody slept much the rest of the early morning of Christmas. The children spent their morning sitting with Draco while he slowly recovered and rejuvenated while the adults were hurriedly contacting key people within the Ministry about the situation at hand. After getting the runaround from the Ministry, Sirius managed to make descript contact with Narcissa who gave her express permission for Draco to spend the remainder of the holidays at Potter Manor. From his understanding, no one else at Malfoy Manor had noticed Draco’s abrupt absence from the home. This was, of course, the best possible outcome for the young dragon. 

Finally, around five in the morning, as the sun began to rise for the day, the children found themselves sitting in the pool room and watching it through the glass wall that kept them safe from the frigid elements outside. Draco finally seemed to have more color to his normally pale complexion. 

Ginny had her feet and legs in the pool as they sat and watched the sky begin to turn a bright orange color, her small head resting against George’s arm and her eyes half closed. As she shivered, George slid his arm around her shoulders and rubbed her arm.

“We should probably get a few hours of sleep,” George whispered as he felt Ginny drifting off. 

Harry glanced at Ginny and then at Draco who was also beginning to nod off where he sat, “Yeah. Let’s get everyone to bed. We can sleep for a few hours before it’s time for breakfast. We don’t have another room ready, so Draco can take mine—I’ll go lay in the living room. Dad won’t care.” 

Draco let out a loud snore at that moment, causing Ginny to jerk awake, her sleepy eyes wide, “What’s going on?” 

Fred let out a snort, “Nothing Ginge. We’re all going to try to get a few more hours of sleep. Come on, I’ll take you to bed.”

Fred tried to pick Ginny up in his arms as she loudly protested. But once he had her cradled against his chest she simply smiled and cuddled back into him. Harry smiled at this sight—it was one of the rare moments when Ginny let anyone see her softer side. 

Harry quickly showed Draco where he would be staying for the night before heading to the living room. Before he headed down, he checked to make sure all of his friends had settled into their beds for the next few hours. Satisfied that everyone was safe and sound, he made his way to the living room and tried, unsuccessfully, to get a few more hours of sleep.

He’d only had the opportunity to lay on the couch for a few minutes before he was interrupted by a loud banging noise from somewhere down the hall. Curious, he got up to investigate. 

The banging sound got louder as he walked into the entryway. It sounded like it was coming from the direction of the library. As he got closer, he could hear two people talking loudly to one another. He could hear snippets of the conversation. 

“Keep it down, Dora. Someone will hear you,” Remus said in a harsh, barely audible to Harry’s ears, whisper. 

Harry frowned and wondered who Dora was. He quietly crept closer to the library door, being careful to stay just out of sight. 

“Oh give it up, Remus. Everyone went back to sleep. Even Sirius curled up for a few hours! And I have to be at my parent’s house soon.”

Harry heard Remus sigh and heard glasses clinking on a table in the other room. Then he heard quiet. Carefully, he peeked into the room to see what was happening. The sight shocked him. 

Inside the room he saw his Uncle Remus with his arms wrapped around a woman with spiky pink hair while they sat on the couch, their lips locked together in a deep and passionate kiss. Harry’s eyes widened as he suddenly recognized the woman nestled in Remus’ arms as Tonks. Surprise engulfed him just as curiosity and something else he couldn’t quite place filled him. For some reason, he couldn’t take his eyes away from the interlocked couple. The way they were holding each other was somehow fascinating to him. It wasn’t until they broke apart that he suddenly came back to himself and realized that he shouldn’t be spying on people. He quickly pulled his head back from the doorway and made his way quietly back to the living room, now wide awake. 

Seeing that sleep would be impossible, Harry decided to head to the kitchen and see if he could have an early breakfast before digging into his presents. 

As Harry walked into the kitchen he was surprised to see James already sitting at the breakfast bar, a mug of coffee in hand and a book in the other, clearly enjoying the silent, early morning. 

“Morning dad,” Harry said as he took a seat.

“Morning,” James said without looking up, “Happy Christmas. Did you already open your gifts?”

“No,” Harry replied as he poured himself some pumpkin juice, “I wanted to come get a snack. Maybe wait for some others to wake up. Everyone else went to try to get some more sleep before getting up for the day.”

“Why didn’t you as well?”

“I tried but couldn’t sleep,” Harry hesitated, “Did you know that Uncle Remus and Tonks were dating?”

James’ eyes shot up from the book to look at Harry. He took a moment, silently thinking through his possible responses before moving the book away from his face, still holding it, to reply, “I was aware they had been seeing each other. I wouldn’t say they’re dating though. I don’t think that’s quite the word for it.”

“What would you call it, then?” I mean, they’re snogging in the library, Harry thought. He wasn’t sure he should mention this fact. It seemed like the pair had been trying hard to keep this moment a secret from everyone else in the house. 

“Well, I would say that they’re very good friends. Ah—kissing friends.”

“So they just snog? And they’re friends?”

“Sort of, yeah.”

“That’s a thing? People do that?”

“Some people. Not everyone. Moony is—he has a fear of commitment.”

“Why? He’s a great guy. He and Tonks would make a great couple, I think.”

“They would. We just have to wait and let Moony figure that out on his own, ok?”

By midmorning everyone was awake and ready to open their gifts. Even though they hadn’t anticipated Draco joining them for the holiday, he still had a sizeable pile of gifts waiting for him under the tree as nearly everyone at the Potter house had purchased him something. He seemed pleasantly surprised at these acts of generosity towards him. He had spluttered thank you’s to everyone and insisted that James needn’t have gotten him anything after letting him stay for the remainder of the holiday. James had simply brushed it aside and told him he was more than welcome. 

Everyone had a wonderful morning opening gifts and they were overall pleased with the hull that year. It wasn’t until early afternoon that Harry managed to pull Ginny aside to give her his gift. 

“What’s up, Harry?” Ginny asked as he pulled her aside.

“I wanted to give you your present. It needs a bit of explanation so I didn’t want to have you open it and not know what it was.”

Ginny furrowed her brows, “What sort of gift requires directions?”

Harry grinned and held out a small, round package to Ginny and winked, “The interactive kind.”

Ginny eyed him suspiciously as she carefully opened the golden wrapped package. As she slid the paper aside she was even more confused to see a small, round, compact mirror complete with hard powder that matched her skin tone. 

“You got me make up? Mum will throw a fit!” Ginny let out a tinkling laugh as she examined the powder. She carefully used the poof to put some over the freckles on her nose and cheeks. She smiled at the effect it had on her complexion, “This is a lovely gift, Harry.”

“Thanks! But the makeup is really only a disguise to hide what it really is. Just in case you ever get caught with it, it’ll look like you’re just doing your makeup.”

“Ok, now I’m really confused. What else would I be doing with this?”

“You haven’t figured it out yet?” Harry asked, surprised.

Ginny shook her head, “I’m not sure what it could—” realization dawned on her, “Wait, don’t you have a mirror, too? And can’t you talk to your dad with it?”

Harry grinned wickedly as he pulled his mirror out of his pocket, “Gin-Gin,” he said in a singsong voice in the mirror. 

Ginny gasped when her mirror suddenly felt hot in her hands. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation, not as if she had touched a burning stove, but it was warm, like a hot shower after a rainy day. She smiled when she caught sight of Harry’s face in her mirror and then looked up at the real Harry, her brown eyes sparkling in the afternoon light. 

“This is amazing, Harry! Now I can talk to you whenever I want this year!” She flung her arms around Harry’s neck, hugging him tightly.

Harry blushed and carefully wrapped his arms around Ginny and held her tightly against him. As he breathed in, he was suddenly aware of how nice she smelled. Like something—flowery. He couldn’t quite place the scent that briefly filled his nose while he hugged Ginny. Then, suddenly, it was gone and she was examining the mirror more closely. 

“Is it only connected with your mirror?”

“No. You can talk to Uncles Moony and Padfoot as well as Draco and my dad. I wanted to make sure you could get a hold of an adult if you were ever in danger or…something,” he trailed off.

“That’s really sweet of you, Harry. It’ll be nice to be able to talk to you and Draco whenever we want. Thank you—it’s the best gift I got this year.”

Harry rubbed the back of his neck, blushing. He wondered briefly why he was blushing. Why was it suddenly so warm in here?

“It wasn’t a big deal. Uncle Moony did the charms and stuff for me and dad helped me find the mirror. I’m just glad you like it.”

“You know, I still have to tell you what outfit you’re supposed to wear this evening for dinner,” Ginny said mischievously.

Harry’s eyes widened, he had honestly forgotten all about their little bet from the other night, “Aw, Ginny, are you really going to make me wear something stupid?”

“Oh, no, Harry. I’m going to have you wear something absolutely stunning. 

The sight that met them shocked them so deeply neither could move for a solid thirty seconds. Standing in the Potter living room, her hair held down by a large, wool cap, was Hermione along with Mr. and Mrs. Granger. Ginny let out a loud, very un-Ginny-like squeal and ran to Hermione, engulfing her in a bone-crushing hug as the girls reunited with one another. Seeing that the time to great her was limited, Harry quickly walked over and hugged Hermione, greeting her and whispering that they had news for her later when it was quiet again. 

Just as Harry and Ginny were shocked to see the Grangers in the living room, everyone else was shocked to see Harry walk into the room. From an objective standpoint, Harry made quite the beautiful bride. Ginny had asked Sirius for help with Harry’s outfit, having him transfigure one of her dresses into a Harry-sized princess style wedding dress. Sweetheart neckline included. Ginny had added glitter and beading to the dress, making sure it retained it’s snow-white color which would look striking against Harry’s black hair. She had also gotten a matching veil and a full bridal bouquet for Harry to carry with him. And he rocked the outfit. 

He made no comment in regard to the dress or accessories. He simply strolled into the room, hugged Hermione and then went to socialize with Ron who, being the best friend he could be, didn’t mention the outfit at all. 

Once the initial shock was over, everyone continued on with their conversations. 

Ginny smiled at Hermione, “What are you doing here? I thought you were skiing in France for the holiday?”

“Professor Lupin, Sirius, and James invited my family for Christmas dinner and my parents said yes! They hadn’t seen everyone in so long, especially since finding out about everyone being wizards and witches, that they wanted to come and get to know a magical family. Mum says it will help us all adjust to our new life. They’ve been quite supportive of my abilities and my new world. What are you doing here? Last I heard you were supposed to be going to Romania to visit Charlie with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. And what on earth is with Harry’s outfit? Is he aware he’s wearing that?”

“Believe it or not, mum gave me the option of going with them or staying here with my brothers. I was really upset I wasn’t going to get to see them over the holiday, so I told them I wanted to stay here. And they. Let. Me. Didn’t even argue. Can you believe it?

“As for Harry. He lost a bet to me and this is his punishment. Don’t bet against the princess of mayhem.”

“Did they really? That’s so surprising. Normally Mrs. Weasley is a bit—”

“Protective? Controlling? Demonic?”

Hermione smiled, “I think protective is the word. You’re her only daughter.”

Ginny rolled her eyes, “I’ve very aware.”

“So what was this bet?”

“He bet me he could beat me in a swimming contest. I swam laps around him.”

“I had no idea you could swim that well. That’s fantastic.”

“Oh yeah. I can outswim all of my brothers.”

“So, why is Draco here? He told us he was going home for the holiday.”

Ginny’s eyes flashed at the mention of Draco’s parents, “His dad and grandfather starved him for most of break. He showed up here early this morning, half dead from starvation and dehydration. James was able to get his mum to give him permission to spend the rest of the holiday here. Good thing, too, because it looked like Sirius was going to murder someone.”

Hermione glanced over at Sirius who was giving a hearty laugh at a joke Mr. Granger told to the group, “Really? I can’t imagine Sirius being angry at anyone. He’s so—I don’t know, cuddly?” 

“He’s certainly cuddly,” Ginny said with a knowing glint in her eye, “He’s also a little ruff sometimes.”

Hermione frowned, “What does that mean?”

“Oh, nothing. He’s just barking mad, I tell you.”

“Is there some sort of joke I’m missing?” 

Ginny laughed and whispered into her ear, “He’s an animagus. He and James both are. James is a stag and Sirius is a dog. I think they’re unregistered.” 

Hermione gasped, “They aren’t!”

Ginny nodded, “Don’t tell anyone though. Harry told me in confidence once. I used to like petting Sirius in his animal form.”

Hermione’s jaw dropped open but, before she could respond, James clapped his hands together to call the room’s attention, “Hey, everyone! I’ve been told that dinner is done and we can start moving into the dining room.”

There was a general commotion as every began filing out of the room and toward the rarely used dinning room. As they walked, a group of three people made their way out of the library and joined the throng. 

“Oh! Tonks, Dromeda, Ted! I’m glad you three made it. I was beginning to wonder if you would make it.”

“Sirius!” Dromeda cried as she made her way to Sirius and hugged him tightly, “Thank you for inviting us. We were surprised to receive the invitation and of course we were happy to come. We even brought Nymphadora. Thank you for including her in your invitation.”

“It was no trouble, Dromeda. We love having Tonks visit our home. Come on, we were just told that dinner is ready. I have you three sitting near us if that’s alright.”

“That sounds lovely. Thank you, James, for having us for dinner.”

“It’s no problem Andromeda. It’s our pleasure,” James said smiling. 

“And who might this lovely couple be? It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Andromeda Tonks, this is my husband, Ted, and our daughter, Nymphadora,” Dromeda introduced as she pointed to each person individually as she spoke to the Grangers. 

“It’s wonderful to meet you,” Jean said, “I’m Jean Granger, Hermione’s mother, and this is my husband, Rick.” 

“How do you know the Potters, Sirius, and Remus?” Dromeda asked.

“Oh, our Hermione is friends with Harry. Apparently they all go to school together—that was a surprise to all of us!”

“Oh! You’re muggles. I had no idea! My Ted is a muggle born. I’m sure he could give Hermione any advice she needed. Has she been adjusting well to Hogwarts? I imagine it’s different than muggle primary school.”

“Yes, I believe she is. She says she’s been doing exceptionally well in classes and she has several friends already.”

“No one has been giving her trouble for being muggle born?” 

“What do you mean? Why would that be an issue?”

“Ah, well—hasn’t anyone told you? Not all wizards and witches take too kindly to muggle borns. That prejudice has been changing in recent years but, not everyone has changed their minds on that front.”

“People are prejudice against some people because they’re born in a muggle family?”

“Some, not all.” 

“Remus,” Jean called across the table, “Is this true? Do some magical people not take kindly to muggle born witches and wizards?”

“Ah, well—” Remus started, hesitantly, “That is true, yes. But I haven’t noticed much of an issue at Hogwarts. Though, students are good at keeping that sort of thing quiet. If we professors hear any sort of slur or prejudice we do dole out detentions. We don’t tolerate that sort of prejudice.”

Jean turned to Hermione who was seated at the other end of the long table, “Hermione, is this true? Has anyone given you any problems because your father and I are muggles?”

Hermione’s eyes widened, “No, mum. Everyone at Hogwarts has been rather excepting. Though, I don’t flaunt the fact that I’m Muggleborn. I don’t want to cause any issues, you know?” 

“You’ll let us know if anyone gives you any problems?” Rick asked seriously.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Granger, we’ll make sure no one gives Hermione any issues,” Ron assured, “They won’t want to mess with the three of us.”

“So, Remus, how has your research been going?” Tonks asked casually from across the table as she slid down in her chair, getting more comfortable.

Smaller conversations broke out around the table as Remus responded, “Uh, it’s going well. We’ve gotten more information on the history of werewolves and—” Remus’ speech faltered as he felt something warm slide against his thigh. He quickly collected himself and continued, “And I think it will assist in tracing the origins of the disease.”

“Oh, how interesting. Tell me more?” Tonks asked as she slid her foot up his leg and across his crotch. 

Remus’ eyes widened as he felt her against his crotch. He quickly glanced around the table to make sure that no one had noticed and then shot Tonks a dirty look, pleading her to stop her unwanted antics. Nevertheless, he told her about the research with frequent interruptions from her wandering foot and his overly responsive penis. As dinner went on his face continued to grow a deeper red. Somehow Tonks’ actions had gone unnoticed and they made it to dessert without outside issue. 

As the plates were being cleared, Remus hissed across the table as the felt the intrusive foot once again, “Stop it. Someone is going to notice!”

Tonks’ eyes widened in feigned shock and innocence, “I don’t know what you mean? Stop eating? Stop sitting here? I’m confused.”

Remus pinched his eyes closed and whispered, “You’ll be the death of me.”

Tonks grinned wickedly at Remus as the pudding was served. She was very much enjoying the evening. 

The rest of the holiday went uneventfully. Harry, Ron, and Draco told Hermione about their discovery regarding Flamel and the Stone. She was as shocked as they had been and then suddenly remembered reading about him in a book she had taken out of the library. She had inwardly kicked herself for forgetting such an important detail from a book. Draco had wondered if she actually believed that she had let the book down. 

The Grangers had reluctantly agreed to allow Hermione to spend the last week of the holiday at the Potter house. the children spent their time playing games, watching muggle movies, and flying on the quidditch pitch. They even managed to convince Hermione to go swimming a few times. Apparently she wasn’t a strong swimmer and didn’t prefer the activity. By the end of the holiday she had gained tremendous skill in the pool and had no qualms about going for a dip. 

It wasn’t long until they found themselves back on the Hogwarts express, ready to get back to classes and learn more about the secret of the philosopher’s stone. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	47. Chapter Forty-Seven: The Bare, Naked Truth

Author’s Notes:

*WARNING: DISCUSSIONS AND IMAGERY OF ABUSE AND NEGLECT DEPICTED WTIHIN THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER*

*I do not own or have the rights to the Harry Potter Series or Tremors the movie. Any appearances or adaptions herein are for the purposes of fanfiction*

Hi everyone! Sorry for the confusing, and multiple, updates last week! I don’t know what was going on with the fanfiction.net server—for some reason it wasn’t showing that chapter 46 existed literally anywhere except in the listing of how many chapters ID has. I emailed the people who run the website, tweeted them, and everything to no avail. I guess it finally popped up though. So, thank you to those of you who read it! and to those of you who waited until now to get to it, thank you for reading it too!

Beer of the week: Schneider Weisse (G. Schneider & Sohn) Original German Hefe-Weizen Ale. This literally has to be the BEST Hefeweizen I’ve ever had to drink. It’s slightly sweet with a creamy-mouthfeel with all the perfect flavors and aroma of banana bread. I absolutely, 100% suggest trying this beer. Plus, it’s nearly 17 oz of beer! What a steal. 

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: I’m glad you liked my Hinny moment! There’s definitely more to come! But I can assure you that a full-on Hinny relationship probably will not come to fruition until at least 3rd year. And as I’m only halfway through PS, that could be a while. And thank you!! I’m not TOO worried about honeymoon weight since we did so much walking in Disney, but I’m sure I gained some lol. David Fishwick: Thank you! Ask and you shall receive! Smallwjl: Nope! Jean is 100% happily and blissly in love with Rick. There will definitely be a close friendship though! 

Iwik: I definitely didn’t take your comment about the Malfoys that way—I was more so trying to explain how I thought of them for my story in particular. A bit of background info if you would. And I 100% agree that Narcissa could do so much more for Draco—she really could. But! You also have to remember that she was also raised the way Draco was (or assumedly so) and she witnessed firsthand what happens to family who do not follow the pureblood ways (i.e. Andromeda being completely cut out). She definitely COULD leave, but that would mean leaving everything she has ever known behind. And I just don’t think, right now anyway, she’s brave enough to make that choice. As for Hinny, I won’t give those secrets away too easily—you’ll have to wait and see!! Potter671: Thank you! I can’t wait to play around with the mirror concept and get more Hinny interaction. 

Thank you everyone for the wonderful comments! You guys really keep me going with this story! 

Update Schedule: Once per week.

Thank you and please enjoy the latest chapter of Ignoring Destiny!

Chapter Forty-Seven: The Bare, Naked Truth

Harry rolled over in his warm and comfortable bed. He had tossed and turned the night before, unable to get any solid hours of sleep. He wasn’t sure why being back in his four-poster at Hogwarts caused this lack of sleep but something in the castle felt off—it was unsettling. He sighed and opened his eyes to stare at the blurry, darkened ceiling. He watched as his eyes played tricks on him, showing dark, moving swirls in the air. He watched as those swirls twisted and spun in front of him. 

He wasn’t sure how long he laid there watching the colors swirl around above him. Eventually he determined that sleep would elude him for the remainder of the night and sat up to look at the watch on his bedside table. The face read four A.M. He looked wistfully at his pillows, wishing that sleep would take him again despite knowing that wouldn’t happen. He quickly swung out of bed and padded off to the bathroom to grab a shower. 

He showered quickly, not bothering to savor the warmth of the water before he turned it off and stepped out. He quickly dressed himself and stood looking at the mirror, wondering what he would do next. He knew it was too early to head to breakfast, and he didn’t have any homework he could work on—not that he wanted to. He supposed he could go downstairs and read in the common room. 

Harry quickly made his way back to his bed and his trunk so he could grab a muggle book. He was debating something horror or maybe a romance. As he debated he reached his trunk he noticed a oddly shaped, brown package sitting there. It seemed to be waiting for him. Harry looked around the room, wondering who could have left the package there so quickly. He knew it hadn’t been there when he left to get a shower, so someone had to have left it while he was gone. 

He reached out to take the package but his hand stopped just short of touching the mysterious package. Why would someone have left this? Is it really meant to be for him? Was this an accident? Is it dangerous? Harry shook his head, that was a silly thought—who would try to endanger him and why would they do it through an anonymous package left at his trunk? He carefully picked up the package and, after making sure no one else was awake, he slid the wrapping away from the contents of the package, revealing a water-like fabric which spilled out to the floor. 

Curious, Harry picked up the pile of fabric and held it up. Other than the texture, it didn’t seem like there was anything overly special about the fabric. He let it slide through his fingers as he admired the feel of it in his hands. As he looked at it he realized it was a cloak. He decided to try it on and see if it fit—he wasn’t sure when he would ever have the opportunity to wear something this luxurious. He walked to a mirror and felt the cloak fall around his body as he slid it on and his eyes widened in shock as his entire body disappeared from view. 

The invisibility cloak! Harry thought in surprise. He had, of course, heard stories about the invisibility cloak during his childhood, but his father wasn’t sure what happened to it over the years. After the cottage at Godric’s Hollow was destroyed and James was in a coma for two years, it had seemingly been lost to time. He wondered briefly if he should call his dad and tell him about this discovery but then he thought more about it. And, as he looked in the mirror, he remembered another mirror that showed him an image of himself, one he would like to view again. 

It had taken some time but Harry finally found his way back to the empty classroom. The plan had formed in his mind so quickly that he had already been leaving his dormitory before it really registered what he was going to do. And now that he was there and the mirror was so close at hand, he was excited with his choice. 

Harry silently walked up to the mirror, wondering if he would be able to see the image in it’s glassy surface if he left the cloak on. As luck would have it, he could. He watched in excitement and elation as the image appeared before him. The dark haired man was, once again, smiling down at the infant in the red-head’s arms. His own green eyes looked at him from the familiar, yet unfamiliar face and the man smiled as he put his arms around the woman. 

Harry stared intently at the woman. Despite her face being obscured, Harry knew that she was a beautiful woman. Her hair shielded her face as it did the last time he saw her, tumbling down her shoulders and breasts in waves of fire and embers. She leaned down again to gently kiss the small, black-haired baby on its scar-less head. 

The scene warmed Harry. The idea that he could possibly have a future where death and Voldemort didn’t loom over him was a concept he had never imagined or thought about. As he thought about that potential and unlikely future, he saw the image adjust, showing him in the background the black-robbed body of who he assumed was Voldemort. Having never seen him in his life, he wouldn’t recognize him without being told who he is. 

Harry was completely oblivious to the passage of time while he sat on the cold stone floor in the abandoned classroom. He only realized that any time had passed when the room began to lighten and brighten. Eventually he realized that he would need to head to breakfast and truly begin his day. 

Harry found himself sitting listlessly at breakfast a few minutes later. He picked at his food as the room filled up around him. It wasn’t long until his friends were seated around him, chattering away about school work. As they talked, Harry thought, and as he thought, he knew what he wanted to do. 

As the great hall emptied, Harry hung back and waited for Draco. Hermione and Ron turned to look at them, waiting for them to follow, “You guys go ahead. I need to talk to Draco about stuff for my dad, anyway.”

Hermione and Ron nodded and turned to head to class. Draco frowned as he caught up to Harry, falling easily in step with his friend, “What’s up, Harry? I just talked to James about the proposal, so I know you’re full of it.”

“Yeah,” Harry said as he ran his fingers through his hair, distracted, “It’s about something else. I found this—thing—in an old classroom. I thought about telling Ron and Hermione but—I think you’ll understand why I like it so much. They won’t understand what’s so interesting about it. Can we meet after curfew tonight to go see it?”

“How are we going to avoid being caught? We were nearly caught when we went out for that lame midnight duel Zabini set us up with.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got us covered. I’ll meet you at the entrance to Ravenclaw tower at midnight.”

Draco looked at Harry skeptically before nodding, “Alright, I’ll come out. But if you don’t show up I’m going to go back to bed. I can’t risk getting into trouble with Father being the way he has been.”

By midnight Draco was so unsure that Harry was going to show up that he debated calling him on his mirror. The only thing that kept him from doing so was the concern that, if he did, he would be the cause of Harry being caught out of bed after curfew. 

As soon as his watch displayed midnight, Draco stepped out of his common room and into the hallway. When he didn’t immediately see Harry, he decided he would wait for 5 minutes. He figured, if he were caught, he could claim that he wasn’t sure how to answer the riddle and he had been stuck outside the room since curfew. Then he nearly had a heart attack as Harry suddenly appeared out of nowhere. 

“Bloody hell!” Draco said loudly as he caught sight of Harry in the dark, “Where the hell did you come from?”

Harry quickly shushed Draco, his eyes wide, “Be quiet. We could get caught. Get under here!” Harry held up his cloak to let Draco under. 

Draco eyed the cloak suspiciously, “What is it?”

Harry rolled his eyes, “It’s an invisibility cloak. Look!” Harry dropped the cloak over him, immediately disappearing from Draco’s view. Harry quickly lifted the cloak again and ushered for Draco to get underneath it with him. 

Draco didn’t argue this time. Instead, he ran under the fabric and watched, wide-eyed as the cloth fell around them, obscuring them from the view of anyone or anything that may encounter them. 

Now that Harry remembered the way, it didn’t take him and Draco long to get back to the empty classroom and the mirror. As soon as they entered the sanctuary of the room, Harry ran to the mirror and looked into its glass. He sighed in relief when the image appeared to him again. He smiled at the woman who’s hair obscured her face. He wondered briefly why her hair always covered her face, why she was constantly looking at the baby instead of at his older self. 

“Can’t you see them?” Harry asked Draco as he looked into the glass.

Draco walked slowly over to where Harry stood and peered into the mirror, seeing only himself and Harry in its reflection, “See who? I see us if that’s what you mean.”

“No. See them. It’s me, but older. And I’m standing with a woman who has this—this beautiful hair. It’s like fire; all deep reds and oranges. And it falls in her face while she looks at the baby. And Voldemort’s in the background, dead. It’s the perfect future,” Harry turned to look at Draco, “It’s a future I never knew was possible.”

Draco smiled sadly, “I can’t see anything in the mirror, but I never knew you didn’t think there was a future after Voldemort comes back. Of course you have one, Harry. I know you’ll win in the end despite any obstacles that may be in your way. But—I still don’t see anything.”

Harry pulled Draco so he was standing in the middle of the front of the mirror and stepped out of the view himself, “There, look at it properly. Do you see it now? Do you see her?”

Draco looked into the mirror and saw himself standing with his parents. They were smiling and holding him close. He had on his Ravenclaw school robes and his father seemed—proud of him. His mother was brushing his hair like she used to do when he was young and his father was smiling at him as he held Draco close. There was no hint in either of his parents’ faces that they were disappointed or angry with him. They both seemed—proud. They seemed like they loved Draco and truly wanted him there with them. Draco smiled at the scene, tears in his eyes as he spoke.

“I—I see myself with my parents and—and they’re proud of me. They don’t care that I wasn’t sorted into Slytherin and they love me. I’m—I’m happy.” 

Harry frowned, “What about the woman with red hair? Do you see her?”

Draco shook his head, “What is this mirror? Why is it showing us these things?”

“I don’t know. Move over, let me look again.”

“No, you had your chance last night. Give me another minute—I’ll probably never see my parents looking this proudly at me again.”

Harry nodded, understanding Draco’s fascination with the mirror, “Fine. But we switch off every 5 minutes.”

Draco nodded absently as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. After several minutes, they heard someone moving outside of the classroom. Harry managed to throw the cloak over them just in time for them to see a pair of luminous eyes wander into the room. Mrs. Norris scanned the room, looking for the source of the noise she had clearly heard. Harry and Draco stood still, both wondering the same thing—did the cloak work on cats? After a few minutes, she turned and left the room.

“This isn’t safe—she might have gone to get Filch, let’s go,” Harry said as he tugged on Draco’s arm. It was the hardest thing they had to do, but Harry and Draco managed to pull themselves away from the allure of the mirror and leave the room.

~ID~

Harry spent the entire next day thinking about the mirror hidden in the empty classroom. He was trying to undo the enigma that it presented, trying to determine why it showed he and Draco two different scenes. And why were they so specific? How did it know what certain people looked like or what to display? He was sure there was some information about this mirror he was missing that would explain its magic to him. 

He decided to go back to the mirror again that evening by himself. He sat next to Draco that evening at dinner. While Ron and Hermione bickered over some insignificant piece of information from class, they whispered a quiet and argumentative conversation. 

“Let’s go to the library tonight,” Draco urged.

“No.”

“How about Hagrid’s?”

“No. You can go though.”

“I know you’re planning to go back tonight,” Draco hissed, “Don’t go back. You’ll get caught. Even with that cloak. We’ve had too many close shaves as it is.”

Harry shook his head. He wanted to go and he would—Draco wasn’t going to be able to stop him.

That night Harry grabbed the cloak again and made his way back to the empty classroom. He walked so quickly he nearly ran to the room. Though he was aware that he was making noise, he didn’t care—he had one goal in mind. And in no time he was standing before the mirror and there were his wife and child. It was odd that after only a few times seeing them he was already thinking of them as his family—his wife and child. That should be an odd thought, but to Harry it felt perfectly normal and he couldn’t wait to meet both of them someday. 

Harry sank down to the floor, sitting on the cold stone, as the cloak fell next to him, forgotten. There was nothing tonight to stop him from staying until the sun rose again the next morning. Nothing at all. Except—

“So—back again, Harry?”

Harry’s heart stopped, his body turning cold as he heard the soft, kind voice emanating from behind himself. He turned his head slowly, looking behind him. 

Sitting on one of the desks by the wall was none other than Professor Dumbledore. Harry realized that he must have walked right passed him in his haste to get to the mirror. How had he not noticed him sitting there, so blatantly out in the open?

“I—I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t see you there. I’m in trouble, aren’t I?”

Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling as he looked at Harry over his half-moon spectacles, “Strange how nearsighted being invisible makes you,” he said, “As for discipline, I believe that that, depends.”

“On what, sir?”

Dumbledore’s eyes twinkled, “So, I see that you, like hundreds before you, have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised.”

“I didn’t know that’s what it was called, sir,” Harry replied cautiously, “But that doesn’t explain how much trouble I’m in.”

“We’ll get to that, Harry. I expect you know what this mirror does now that you’ve had the chance to test its capabilities.”

“It—well—it shows me a future after—after Voldemort—”

Dumbledore frowned, his face paling so slightly that Harry didn’t notice, “And it showed Draco his family, loving him and full of pride.”

“How did you know—”

“I don’t need a cloak to become invisible,” Dumbledore said gently, “Now, can you think of what the Mirror shows us all?”

Harry thought and then shook his head.

“Let me explain. The happiest man on earth would be able to use the Mirror like a normal one, that is, he would look into it and see himself exactly as he is. Does that help?”

Harry thought again, putting the pieces together in his mind, and said slowly, “It shows us what we want—exactly what we want…”

“Yes and no,” Dumbledore said quietly, “It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never know the safety and surety of constant and stable future—who has never been able to think about planning for that future, or having the luxury to hope for it, sees yourself having one in the most common way. By getting married and having a family. While Mr. Malfoy, who has never felt as if he lived up to his parents’ expectations sees them loving him, proud of his choices in life. However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible.

“The mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow, Harry, and I ask that neither you nor Mr. Malfoy go looking for it again. if you ever do run across it, you will now be prepared. Pass my message along, Harry. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Now, why don’t you put that admirable cloak back on and get off to bed?”

Harry stood up, clutching the cloak in his hand as he looked up at Dumbledore, “I’m not in trouble?”

“Not this time, Harry.”

“Sir, if I’m not in trouble, may I ask one more question?”

“You may.”

“What do you see when you look in the mirror?”

Dumbledore hesitated and then smiled softly, “I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woolen socks. One can never have enough socks. Another Christmas has come and gone this year and I didn’t get a single pair. People keep insisting on giving me books.”

Harry thought for a moment and nodded. As he left Dumbledore standing in the room, he thought to himself that Dumbledore hadn’t told him the truth—that he saw something else in the mirror. Yet, he couldn’t be sure.

~ID~

After the noise and excitement of the last few weeks of the holidays, Potter Manor felt eerily quiet and empty to the three human occupants. With this new found peace, the Marauders were hard at work preparing a presentation for the Wizengamot. 

It hadn’t taken Sirius long to come to the conclusion that something needed to be done about Draco’s situation. When similar occurrences happened to him as a child, there wasn’t anyone he could turn to who had the power to make a difference in the world at large—the wizarding community wasn’t ready for a massive, systematic change in structure like it is today. Monty Potter had done all he could for Sirius at the time. He had brought up several proposals to the Wizengamot but, the Supreme Mugwump at the time was not prepared to hear any evidence brought against a pureblood family as prominent as the Blacks. All of his proposals were instantly shot down, unheard. But times were changing and with Dumbledore in charge of the Wizengamot, their petition would at least be heard regardless of any general acceptance. Even if the petition simply brought awareness to the situations that many pureblooded children face, that would be enough for now. Starting the conversation would be enough. 

Within two weeks of the children’s departure, James, Sirius, and Remus had completed their proposal. And, despite Sirius’ objections, they had included past incidents of abuse. Their intent was to display the systematic nature of the abuse and pureblood teachings. They hoped it didn’t seem too rushed—they wanted to be able to present it during the next meeting. Hopefully Lucy wouldn’t get overly defensive of the proposal. Then again, a part of Sirius hoped that he did. He was itching for a fight with that prick. 

Writing this proposal had set the group back in their horcrux hunt. Their original plans to visit Little Hangleton had been postponed following Draco’s arrival. And with quidditch season back in full swing, they were going to have to plan their trip carefully around James’ ever-changing schedule. And there was still the issue of attempting to clear out Grimmauld Place. Sirius had been avoiding the very idea of attempting that battle, going so far as to feign illness or memory loss at the slightest mention of the dreaded activity. Of course, neither friend blamed him for this, but they knew it wasn’t something that could be pushed off forever. Who knew what sorts of dark artifacts lay within those walls that needed contained? And there was the issue of the old house elf that lived within the walls. But that endeavor would have to wait until after they visited Little Hangleton—that much they knew for certain. 

James and Sirius walked into the Wizengamot meeting proudly, shrouded in their deep purple robes, their names glinting in gold across their breast. They made small talk with some of the other members. Augusta was their main source of company as their seats were situated closely together. But as Dumbledore stood up, the room quickly came to order. 

“Good evening, everyone. I know that our meeting tonight is starting rather late—for that I apologize. Sometimes this cannot be helped given everyone’s schedules in the world at large. We have several items on our agenda this evening so I suggest we get to it. First on the floor is Dolores Umbridge with proposed legislation to alter the regulation on the trade of certain magical ingredients. Ms. Umbridge, if you would?”

They watched as a squat, toad-like woman stood up and cleared her throat in quite an annoying fashion. James compared its likeness to that of a scratching record—unpleasant but also knee-jerking. He half listened to the new proposal. Apparently, she wanted to more heavily regulate the ability to purchase and use occamy eggshells in potion ingredients. It didn’t sound like a proposal she had put together herself, rather, it sounded like one she was merely presenting for an absent party. James’ suspicions were confirmed when, at the end of her triad, it was stated that she had presented the legislation in lieu of a member of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. As Senior Under Secretary under the Minister, apparently one of her duties was presenting any legislation or documents during Wizengamot meetings when the representative was unavailable. That meant that James and Sirius would be subjected to her grating voice more often than they would appreciate. 

The legislation was based it’s want of protection and regulation of the trade of occamy eggshells because of the danger occamys were in due to the high demand of the shells. Wizards had begun taking unhatched eggs from nests so they could break them open and sell the shells at a high value. Some wizards were even going so far as to raise breeding pairs of occamys so they had a guaranteed supply of shells for sale and use. This practice was causing occamys to become endangered in Brittan and would, eventually, lead to their extinction. The legislation proposed to outlaw the practice of taking shells before the animals had hatched so as to allow the population to regrow at safe rates. Both James and Sirius voted to enact the legislation. 

After several long hours of listening to proposed legislation, it was finally time. 

“I would like to apologize to the room at large as we are, unfortunately, not done for the evening. I know that the legislation on cauldron thickness was supposed to be our last, however, a last-minute addition to our agenda this evening was made shortly before we began. Therefore, we must hear this last piece. Lords Potter and Black had a committee proposal they would like to present to the group at large and I implore all of you to give it your fullest attention. Lord Black, Lord Potter, if you please.”

Both men stood up and looked at one another before Sirius spoke, “Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen. I apologize for having to keep you later than anticipated this evening, but we must address a serious matter here today,” this statement brought about several eyerolls from colleagues in the crowd. Dumbledore simply smiled wistfully as he listened. “Throughout the centuries and millennia, our world has been built on the core values of secrecy and, in most cases, blood status. It has been a long-held belief by a good portion of the wizarding world that the stronger your blood relation is to other wizards, the lack of non-magical blood in your lineage, is of the utmost importance and, to keep it that way, those with what is called ‘purer blood’ have raised their children to hold certain beliefs and ‘family traditions’. Even now we have kept what is supposed to be our fair and impartial legislative process strictly to those of high rank within the ministry and those of ‘purer blood’. As I look around today, I see very few people who would be able to state that they are descended from muggles and even fewer, if any, who are muggle born.

“I’m not here to address the inherent and systematic issues that are imbedded with that observation. I am, however, here to address the systematic issues involved in these traditions that many pure blood families still cling to. These beliefs and traditions that lead to the rise of power of Lord Voldemort some thirty years ago. In these families, children are taught from a young age how to act and behave in what is denoted as “the pureblood way”. We are taught lessons about the world, languages, and debutant ways. However, the punishments for wrongdoing, for not being up to snuff or upholding these values well enough, are the negative implications that bring this proposal to the forefront today. 

“In the summer of 1890, the Wizengamot of Brittan outlawed child abuse. This piece of legislation was extremely specific on what qualified as child abuse. It stated, in relevant part, ‘Child abuse shall be defined as any unnecessary form of aggression toward a child without the intent to correct behavior that would cause stain upon the family name.’ The statute further defines aggression as, ‘the hitting, beating, or injury of a child that results in any physical wound lasting for more than twelve hours.’ Causing stain upon the family name was defined as, ‘causing ill repute or dishonor upon a pureblood or ancient family name.’

“At the time this statute was enacted, the racial blood divide amongst wizards was common and prevalent. It was common practice to treat those of muggle lineage as lesser than those with purer blood and it was common practice amongst pure blood families to teach their children pureblood traditions through the use of what we now call corporal punishment. This corporal punishment has always bordered on torture. However, the belief was firm that children of pureblood families were little more than property to be used to further the family name and fortune. And to be able to do that, the parents of pureblood children needed to be able to control their legacy in anyway they saw fit. And, as the patriarchal head of those pureblood families were solely in positions of power in the Ministry and the Wizengamot, reserving the ability to continue their discipline practices was paramount despite feeling the need to regulate and limit it throughout the rest of the wizarding community. 

“I do not believe it will come as a shock to many of you that this statute has been left untouched over the last century. That the definitions of ‘abuse’ and ‘stain upon the family name’ have continued into this new, more accepting era.”

Sirius paused for a moment to observe the crowd. There he saw a compilation of shocked and disgusted faces as well as those that sat ridged and stoic. He was unsurprised and continued, “It also will not come as a shock to many of you that the teaching strategies among many of the ancient, pureblood families have also not changed over the last century—over the last millennia. It will not come as a shock to you that those families still utilize old and ancient spells as a form of discipline. That starvation and torture have not been extinguished from the repertoire of punishment options for those families. That these acts of evil have gone unnoticed and unpunished for longer than our current society has been in place. 

“This is why Lord Potter and I stand today to speak to you, to plead with you, to accept our Proposal for Committee to Reevaluate and Rewrite the Child Abuse Statute of 1890. We propose that a committee of 20 witches and wizards of all blood status be composed to review and rewrite the child abuse statute so that it will protect all children of all blood status and more accurately reflect the current views of society today. No child should be subjected to any form of abuse in our world or any and the fact that it still continues prevalently today is an issue that no witch or wizard should ignore. In our proposal, Lord Potter and I have listed the criteria that each member of the committee should fit in order to sit on it. We have also proposed that it should include Dumbledore, as the Supreme Mugwump, as well as a representative from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. We also propose that the Head Boy and Girl from Hogwarts should be included as a representative so that the children of our world may have a voice in the matter.”

James spoke now as he waived his wand, his voice firm where Sirius’ was wavering, the emotions overwhelming him, “We have distributed our proposal to each of you. We ask that you read it in its entirety before we vote to form this committee. We ask that you vote with your children, and your children’s friends, in mind.”

James and Sirius waited patiently as people read their petition. They again saw the multitudes of emotions on their faces ranging from approval to stoic to anger. As people finished reading, they began looking up, waiting patiently to vote. 

As everyone finished reading, Dumbledore stood and smiled, “Before we begin a vote, I ask that, if anyone has any questions regarding the proposal, that they be asked now.”

There was some general and angry murmuring around the room for a moment, but no one spoke. Sirius noticed Lucy in the crowd, his arms crossed and his look dangerous.

“Then, I ask all those in favor of the formation of the Committee to Reevaluate and Rewrite the Child Abuse Statute of 1890 to please raise your hands. Thank you. All those against the formation, please indicate now. Thank you. The Wizengamot has voted against the formation of the Committee. Thank you everyone, I look forward to seeing you all next month.”

James and Sirius sat, dumbfounded, that their proposal had been denied. Angry, they made their way to Dumbledore, who was silently gathering his things before leaving.

“Albus, a moment, if you could,” James asked.

“What can I do for you, Sirius, James? I’m sorry your proposal did not turn out as planned. I had high hopes for it.”

“How much did it lose by?” Sirius asked darkly.

“Not much. I believe there was only a 10-person difference.”

“Out of 250 that’s a decent sized gap,” James commented, “You wouldn’t be able to tell us who voted against it, would you? We saw a few but, we’re at the front of the group, so we couldn’t see behind us well.”

Dumbledore nodded, “The majority who voted against you were those of pureblood status. I believe you know who those are. I suggest you try again on a more…favorable day.”

James and Sirius nodded, understanding the unsaid suggestion layered in his response, “We understand, Albus. Thank you for your advice.”

Dumbledore nodded and headed out of the room, leaving James and Sirius in his wake. They had work to do. 

~ID~

While James and Sirius were at their meeting, Remus found himself alone at Potter Manor with several hours to kill. He had just settled in to watch a movie when Gus peeked into the living room.

“Remus, Ms. Tonks is here to see you. She says it’s urgent she speak to you.”

Remus sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, this woman clearly didn’t understand boundaries, “Go ahead and send her in. If you could, could you keep this just between us? I don’t think James or Sirius need to know I’ve been sneaking girls into the house.”

Gus nodded, “I is able to be doing that. I is sending her in.”

Tonks walked into the room, her hair a new shade of bright pink. Remus rather liked this new color. He thought it was interesting how she decided to have it spike out of her head. He briefly admired how the pink color made her skin seem creamier with hints of blush just hiding under the skin. He noticed faintly the hint of gooseberries—he recalled smelling them in his office when they had worked together on her translation project. Even though she was across the room from him, he could smell it as strongly as if she were sitting next to him. 

Tonks smiled at Remus, her eyes alight with excitement and anticipation, “Good evening, Remus.”

“Nymphadora,” Remus replied, “What brings you here this late in the evening?”

Tonks shrugged as she made her way to the couch to sit next to Remus. She snuggled into the cushions and threw a blanket over her legs, “I was in the area and was thinking about you. I thought I’d see what you were up to. What’s this thing?”

Remus looked and saw that Tonks was indicating the TV, “It’s a television. It’s a muggle electronic thing that lets them watch moving stories with sounds. I’m watching what they call a movie right now. That’s like, a really long show. This one is a newer movie—it’s about creatures that live under ground and they eat the people in the town if they’re not on some sort of concrete slab or on a building. It’s quite interesting. The creatures remind me of Keteas but underground rather than in the ocean or sea. I’m not sure if you learned about Keteas during your defense classes or in auror training.”

“Briefly. We don’t see them often in the UK. They’re typically found in the Ionian Sea. Greece has a hard time controlling the minor population of them on occasion but we don’t generally assist them. So these things just burrow under the ground and eat everything?”

“Yeah, basically. And the muggles are doing their best to live through the crisis and kill the creatures before they die, too.”

Tonks nodded and sat next to Remus as the movie continued on. She found herself loving the ridiculous plot and the characters. Remus smiled when he caught sight of her completely entranced with the movie—she had clearly never seen one before. 

About halfway through the movie, Tonks relaxed next to Remus and moved closer, cuddling up to him and pulled the blanket over themselves. Remus frowned at the close contact, stiffening at the ease with which she snuggled next to him. They stayed like that through the entire movie. 

Over the next half hour Remus silently wondered why she continued sitting so close to him and how she managed to stay so relaxed as she leaned into him. By the end of the movie, when she had only moved somehow closer, he was seething. 

“Nymphadora,” he started, the words spitting through his teeth, “Is there a reason you’re laying all over me?”

Tonks looked at him, confused, “What do you mean? I was snuggling with you while we watched a movie. I thought it was a pleasant date. I really enjoyed this muggle film. It was interesting.”

Remus blanched, “Date?” 

“Uh, yeah. That’s the thing when two adults get together and spend time together, alone, doing some sort of joint activity. Like watching a muggle film.”

“I’m quite aware of what a date is, I’ve been on plenty,” Remus spat, “This, however, was not a date.”

“Uh, ok,” Tonks said confusedly, “It wasn’t a date? We don’t need labels—we were just hanging out.”

“What do you mean by ‘labels’?” 

Tonks was thoroughly confused now, “What? I—labels. You know, words like date and relationship and boyfriend/girlfriend? I—I’m not sure what you’re getting at here.”

“Why would we need ‘labels’, Dora?”

“I’m saying we don’t. We can date and not have labels. They tend to make things easier is all.”

“We aren’t dating, Tonks.”

Tonks frowned, “Since when do you call me Tonks? And what do you mean we aren’t dating? What do you think we’ve been doing over the last two or three months?”

“Just having sex. I—what else would it be?”

“You think we’ve just been, what, sleeping together on occasion? And what about those times that we’re together, like tonight, where we aren’t having sex? What’s that, then?”

“I—just—two friends getting together? I’m not sure why you would think it constituted anything else?”

“I don’t know, Remus, maybe the fact that we’ve also been sleeping with each other?” Tonks half shouted at Remus, “That, you know, when people sleep together multiple times and then also spend time with each other without having sex, that they’re typically dating or in some sort of relationship? Especially considering we never discussed this being a casual sexual relationship.”

“Most people would assume that, without conversation explicitly regarding the establishment of a relationship, that the only logical conclusion would be a casual sexual relationship.”

“I completely disagree. A casual, sexual relationship generally necessitates the discussion regarding the limits of such a relationship. Typically, the only time two people would discuss whether they’re dating is before the first date or at the time they decide to become exclusive or make the relationship ‘official’. Because we skipped that first date stage, we wouldn’t logically have that discussion until we transitioned to exclusivity.”

“I—what? That was utterly confusing,” Remus said as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “Just—we are not dating. I don’t know what you thought this is, but it’s not dating. I don’t—I don’t date. I keep things casual. It’s the only way with—with everything,” he said as he waived his hand in the absentmindedly.

“What do you mean, everything?” Tonks asked angrily.

“It’s nothing. I’m not the right man for you—for anyone. You’re too young, too—free. You deserve someone who can give you everything in life, give you the world.”

“And why can’t you do that? You’re a kind and caring man who clearly loves children. You have a good career and you kiss—it’s like my entire body will melt every time we kiss.”

“I’m not right for you—for anyone. I can’t bear to drag anyone in the mud with me. If you knew—”

“If I knew what?” Tonks yelled, “Knew that you’re a werewolf?!” 

Remus froze. Of all of the things he was expecting her to throw at him, to accuse him of or reasons she shouldn’t stay, he never expected her to know, to suspect. 

“Well?” Tonks pushed, “I sincerely hope that isn’t your rationale because I’ll tell you right now, that’s complete and utter bullshit.”

“How—”

“Oh come on, Remus, I’m not an idiot. Though, if you thought I didn’t know, you must have assumed I was considering how painfully obvious it is.”

“Obvious?” Remus whispered in a far-away voice.

“I was in your class for 3 years, Remus. You were always out around the full moon and in the few days before and after, you were always so tired and ill. A few of us students figured it out around 4th year. We found out that there were older students who knew, too, who did everything they could to keep those that figured it out from spreading the information. I assume it’s still an ongoing ‘club’ of sorts at Hogwarts. Your lycanthrope is only a big secret to those too lazy or dumb to notice.”

Remus was speechless. He had no idea how to respond to this new information. 

“Well? Was that your idiotic reason? Because I have news for you: I. Don’t. Care.”

Then the anger flared in him again and he shouted, “Yes, that is part of my reasoning! I’m dangerous! I’m unfit! I’m…disgusting! Not to mention too old for you—as if that weren’t enough on its own! As if I would risk your safety, your life and social standing for my own selfish desires! We can never have a public relationship. Never. The most I will ever be able to give you is casual interaction, casual sex. If that’s not enough for you—there’s the door.”

Tonks looked at him, tears in her eyes, “You’re a selfish, self-loathing prat, you know that? I don’t care how old you are or what disease you have. It doesn’t make me think any less of you. I just want you to be happy.”

“Not tarnishing your reputation, keeping you safe and alive makes me happy, Dora.”

“What, so now we’re back to Dora again?”

“If what I can give you is enough then, yes, for now.”

Tonks thought for a moment as tears leaked from her eyes. She angrily wiped them away, inwardly chastising herself for allowing them to fall. 

At the sight of her tears, Remus’ eyes softened. He reached out gently to wipe away a stray tear from her cheek and frowned, “I’m sorry, Dora. I’m just—I’m all wrong for you.”

No, you’re all right for me, can’t you see that? She thought as she looked into his golden eyes as fear took over her. The fear that he might one day make good on his threat to leave, that one day he would believe he wised up enough to leave her to keep her “safe”. Safe from whom she wasn’t sure—she was an auror for merlin’s sake. In her fear, she leaned forward and yanked his face to hers, capturing his soft, yielding lips with her own, crushing them. 

If he could bruise, Remus thought his lips would from the force Tonks was exerting on them. He couldn’t say he was shocked by the turn of events, he had hoped that the argument would end this way—her lips on his, touching her, feeling her, for what might be the last time. If he were strong enough. 

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in as close as he could. If he had been able, he would have taken her inside of himself—no, she still wouldn’t have been close enough. He knew he was lying to himself, telling himself that she was all wrong for him. He knew, no matter how much he wished he didn’t, how perfectly right Nymphadora Tonks was for him. And, as he vanished the completely unnecessary clothing she was wearing, he hoped to god she never realized how important, how perfect she was, to him. 

Remus laid Tonks on the long, broad couch and watched as her breasts rose and fell with her breath, her nipples turning to stiff peaks in the crisp air. He carefully took one of those peaks into his mouth, licking and sucking the beautiful, pink flesh as Tonks moaned his name, her hand fisting in his hair. Her back arched as he ran his warm hands down her sides, his mouth following their course so he could taste more of her gooseberry skin. 

And, my god, she tasted better than she smelled. It was nearly overwhelming as he made his way lower. And when he reached her wetness, the heat, it was unbearable. And when his tongue entered her, Tonks couldn’t do anything but scream. 

She grasped the edges of the couch in her hands, holding onto them as if she would fall into the open sky should she let go. Though, she felt like she was falling into the sky as Remus licked her and rubbed against her clit. This was a pleasure she had yet to experience for herself and she reveled in the feel of Remus’ tongue, the warm softness of it, being inside of her. 

The orgasm ripped through Tonks with little warning, little build up. She felt as if she were exploding around Remus’ face as her hips arched and she cried out for him, begging him for more. 

Remus was happy to oblige her as he slowly kissed his way back up to Tonks’ slightly parted lips, his hands dragging behind his tongue. And, in seconds, he gripped her hips tightly, digging his fingers into her, as he plunged his cock deep inside of her, burring himself in the heat that was Tonks. 

End Notes:

Keteas are sea serpents from ancient Greek mythology. The two most prominently known were Cetus, slain by Perseus, and the one slain by Herakles at Troy. 

Yes, the movie mentioned is Tremors. I do not own the rights to the movie nor do I own any of the plot or characters. I’m simply using the movie as an additional plot/information point in my fanfiction. 

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	48. Chapter Forty-Eight: Blood and Fire

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well during these COVID times. We’ve been keeping safe at home, just enjoying our time off. I’ve been playing a lot of Among Us lately. It’s super addicting, not going to lie. I’ve also gotten an offer for some temporary employment that would turn into a permanent position should I pass the bar. I’m super excited because this is a really reputable firm and I have absolutely fallen in love with the other associates there. I’m super excited to start on Friday! Also, Midnitewanderer, I should apologize in advance for what I’m about to do to you this chapter…..

Reviews: Iwik: I would literally never know that English is a second language to you if you hadn’t said anything. You write so well! I’m glad you enjoyed my Harry/Draco moment. I was worried how that would go over with the readers. I agree with you on the Remadora front! Jthomajba: lol the shipping is strong. And, no, probably not. Lily was the only woman for James and I don’t intend on giving him a love interest any time soon. 1Jemmagirl22: Ha! Remus definitely has a terrible case of Martyr syndrome. He’ll get over it in time though. Anixara: Thank you for pointing that out! I’m not sure how I’ll fix it but you’re right. It was further down than I looked previously. I’ll have to think how. 

Beer of the Week: Breckenridge Brewery’s Vanilla Porter. This porter is dark and rich with amazing notes of vanilla throughout. It’s reminiscent of a vanilla/chocolate mouse and makes an amazing dessert beer.

Posting Schedule: Once a week.

Thank you again for reading Ignoring Destiny! I can’t wait to hit 50 chapters with you all!

Chapter Forty-Eight: Blood and Fire

Sirius stepped out of the fire place in Remus’ suite at Hogwarts. He glanced around the sparsely furnished living room and frowned when he caught sight of the old chocolate wrappers on the coffee table. He recalled briefly Remus’ old habit of eating chocolate when he was feeling down. 

Concerned, Sirius moved more quickly throughout the suite, his mind racing. As he moved, his mind continued back to a place he wished it wouldn’t have.

A young, less kept, Sirius Black strode into the 2nd year boys dormitory just after dinner late one Friday night. They had just returned back to Hogwarts earlier that week after being on their Christmas holiday. Sirius had spent his time locked away in the dank building he was forced to call home. He had, once again, suppressed the experience, preferring instead to utilize that energy into more productive means—like making others laugh. 

He was silently planning a prank on Snivellus while he walked. He was trying to figure out how to transfigure his clothes into lady’s knickers and bra when he walked past Remus’ bed. He noticed briefly that it was covered in old chocolate wrappers. He didn’t take much notice of it as Remus loves his chocolate, outside of the fact that there were wrappers everywhere and Remus was normally such a tidy person. Sirius shrugged, figuring that Remus would come back and clean it up later, and continued into the bathroom. The hot shower was calling his name right now. 

Sirius stepped under the hot spray and sighed contentedly as he let it beat against his back. He was so absorbed in his own bliss that it took him several minutes to notice the quite, quick breaths coming from the stall next to him. He stood for a moment, listening, trying to place the sound—where he’d heard it before. Then his heart dropped to his stomach as he realized what the noise was. Or, more importantly, who the noise was coming from. He quickly turned the water off and tugged his boxers back on—not caring whether they got wet, knowing they would be anyway. 

“Remus?” Sirius called from the other side of the curtain, “Remus I know you’re in there.”

He heard a loud sniff before Remus responded, “Uh, yeah, sorry. Am I taking all the hot water?”

Sirius rolled his eyes, “Come on, Rem. We all know, thanks to you, that the hot water never runs out. It was in Hogwarts: A History.”

“Then what do you want?” He snapped, “I’m trying to shower.”

“I want to know why the fuck you’re crying in the shower. What are you some kind of Bird?”

“I’m not crying.”

“You are,” Sirius said softly, “I can hear you. What happened?”

“Nothing happened.”

“Then what’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Go away, Sirius.”

“I’m coming in.”

“No, you aren’t! I’m fucking naked!”

“Yes I am!” Sirius said as he drew the curtain back. Inside the shower he saw Remus sitting on the floor under the spray, his knees drawn up to his chest and his head down, “Oh, Rem. What happened?”

Remus shuttered and curled into himself more, turning into a tight ball of anxiety as the hot water beat down on him. 

Sirius simply sat beside Remus and put his arm around the sobbing boy as he forced himself to look straight ahead in case Remus decided to unfold himself. And they sat that way for a while, neither of them moving even when their skin began turning a dark pink from the heat of the water. Once Remus had finally relaxed, he looked up at Sirius, his eyes red and puffy.

“I’m a monster.”

“No, you’re not.”

“I am. I almost killed my father during the last moon.”

“Moony—”

“He came into the room in the early morning—he thought I had already transformed back because I was so quiet. I hadn’t. I attacked him and he barely made it out of the room without being bitten or—or worse.”

“Rem—no, listen to me, Rem it’s not your fault. Your dad knows better than to go into the room before he’s completely sure you’ve changed back. You aren’t yourself while you’re the wolf.”

“Which is exactly why I tried to tell Professor Dumbledore I’m too dangerous to stay at school. He refused to either let me leave or to expel me. He believes I’m not a danger and that I will see that one day. He’s wrong. If I’d kill my own father while I’m the wolf, I’d kill anyone.”

“Yeah, you’re dangerous while you’re the wolf. But that’s why Dumbledore keeps you in the shack—so everyone stays safe. Including you. You won’t hurt anyone.”

“I will.”

“Rem—”

“Maybe not this time, or the next, but—one day—I will hurt someone.”

Sirius snapped back to reality and shook his head. He could remember that day clearly because it was the day that he, James, and Peter had decided to become animagi. They wanted to help Remus understand he could be made safe—that he could be a werewolf and also a man. And it had worked for some time. And to this day he and James went with Remus during the moon so he wasn’t alone. 

He carefully pushed the door to the bathroom open—he could hear the shower running, the water falling inside of it. 

“Rem?” he called, “Remus I know you’re hiding in here.”

“I’m not hiding. Go away.”

“Nah, don’t think I will,” Sirius said as he leaned against the wall next to the shower.

“Don’t you have a concept of privacy?”

“Never have, never will.”

“Well, if you’re going to stand out there, could you at least pass me a new bottle of soap? Mine ran out.”

“Only if you tell me what’s got your hippogriff.”

“What do you mean?”

“I saw the wrappers, Moony.”

“Uh, ok? What do candy wrappers have to do with anything?”

“Remus. What’s wrong?”

“I—”

“And don’t bother lying.”

“Fine. Dora and I got into an argument the other night. She—she wants more than I can give her.”

“What do you mean, Rem?”

“She—she wants a relationship. But you know I can’t, I—Sirius I can’t I’m too dangerous, too old. Too wrong for her.”

“Oh shut up, Remus.”

Remus was momentarily taken aback, his lips pursed, “Excuse me?”

“Excuse me,” Sirius mimicked, “You’re over here playing the bleeding martyr because, for some unfathomable reason, you think you don’t deserve to be happy. So, you do everything you can to make sure you don’t let yourself be happy. Clearly Tonks doesn’t think you’re too old or dangerous and, really, you’re a prat for thinking you’re too dangerous. She’s an auror for Merlin’s sake! If anyone can handle your furry problem outside of Prongs and myself, it’s her.”

“Being an auror would do her no good if I attacked her!”

“It would do her a world of good! I’ve done the training. She’s more than equipped to deal with a rogue werewolf during his monthlies.”

“My monthlies?”

“Yes—the full moon. Your monthlies.”

“It’s not a period, Sirius. You can’t just call my transformations my ‘monthlies’.”

“I can and I did.”

“Sirius—”

“Remus!” Sirius repeated in a high-pitched, whiney voice, “Just give the woman a chance. You clearly like her and she clearly does not give a single shit about you being a werewolf.”

“I’m done having this conversation, Sirius. Why exactly are you here? Also, turn around, I’m getting out of the shower.”

Sirius turned around and continued, “James says it’s time. We’re going to go this afternoon. Are you in?”

“To—yeah, yeah I’m in. Just us?”

“We think so. We should be able to handle anything that we could find. And we don’t really expect to find anything, anyway. So why worry anyone, you know?”

“Did you tell Albus?”

“No, and we’re not going to unless we find something.”

Remus walked around Sirius, a towel around his waist, and nodded, “I agree. Though I’m not a fan of hiding any advancements from Albus, I agree that we should wait.”

“Good. Now put some clothes on. We have to dress like muggles. We’ll see you back at the manor.”

Back at the Manor James was hurriedly gathering supplies for their trip to Little Hangleton. Even though they were fairly certain that they weren’t going to find anything of interest there, he wanted to be prepared for any possibility. He had managed to gather a few extra wands, a sneakoscope, several antidotes to poisons (including a bezoar), and an invisibility cloak. While he had been gathering everything, he had realized that his cloak was missing. He had mentally filed that information away, intending to look into the issue at a later time. 

He was just grabbing a few books to bring with them when Sirius stepped out of the fireplace, an annoyed look on his face. “Hey! Did you get Moony?”

“Yeah, he’s on his way.”

“Did something happen?”

“He’s just PMSing.”

“Uh,” James voiced, “Care to elaborate?”

“His monthly is coming up in a few days and he’s PMSing.”

“His mon—Sirius, Moony is a man. You—you’re aware of that, right?” 

“Yes.”

James frowned when Sirius didn’t elaborate further, “So—how is he experiencing a woman’s bodily function?”

“He’s not. He’s having his monthly. His monthly transformation? You know how he gets—moody, irritable, hungry, tired, horny, that sort of thing.”

“That’s oddly specific.”

“Remus was oddly specific in his woe’s about Tonks.”

“His woe’s about Tonks?” James asked, confused.

“Oh, yeah, his commitment issues.”

“This again?”

“Yeah. Get this, she knows he’s a werewolf, doesn’t care, but he still claims he’s too dangerous and old for her.”

“I mean, I get the age thing, but if she doesn’t care—and who’s he kidding? Tonks is an auror! She’s quite capable of handling herself if there were ever an issue.”

“That’s exactly what I told him. He wasn’t buying it. she’ll wear him down though—Tonks gets what she sets her mind on.”

James ran his fingers through his hair, today was not going according to plan at all, “Ok—ok. When is he going to be here?”

As if on queue, the fireplace in the library lit up with green flames and a besmirched and moody werewolf stepped out of the flames. 

Remus did a quick cleansing charm while James attempted to avert his eyes from the growing tension in the room. He continued to shove objects into his overly small, but surprisingly large, bag. 

“So,” Remus started stiffly, “Little Hangleton? I would have appreciated some notice that we’d be going today before Sirius barged in on my shower.”

“You walked in on the man while he was showering? Tsk tsk, Sirius. Bad dog!” James added playfully.

“Hey! I’m hurt.”

“At least he didn’t call you a bitch,” Remus added off-handedly.

After another hour of witty banter and the collection of “necessities”, such as the bag of crisps and pop that Sirius insisted they needed, they were ready to head to Little Hangleton. The three of them stepped out of the boundaries of Potter Manor and disapparated. 

The three men looked around the little lane once they appeared just outside of the town of Little Hangleton. They looked up and down the deserted lane before turning to one another. 

“So,” started Remus, “We’re looking at the Gaunt house and the Riddle house?”

“Yeah. And maybe we should check out the gravesites. Voldemort could use his family’s bones for a number of dark spells,” Sirius added thoughtfully.

Remus frowned, “How do you—”

“Trust me, I know.” Sirius replied gravely.

James eyed Sirius suspiciously but nodded and began making is way down the lane, “Where should we go first? Gaunt is closer.”

“Why don’t we start at the Riddle house and work our way back?” Remus suggested. 

They all agreed and began making their way down the lane. It wasn’t long before they came across the grey, dilapidated house of Gaunt. They all eyed it suspiciously as they passed by and continued up the lane to the grand house on the hill they knew would be there. 

After several minutes of walking, they arrived in the town of Little Hangleton. It was a pretty and quiet place. James could see why someone would want to settle down in the area. The houses were arranged in neat rows, their colors matching and the fronts all the same. Small shops were nestled about and bustling with activity as they passed by. They quickly made their way across the town square and up the hill to the large house that sat atop it. 

It was certainly a grand home—they could tell that it was once owned by a wealthy person. The house was enormous with arching doorways and long, engulfing windows. The house was painted in what used to be a brilliantly bright white with deep grey accents along the windows and door. Now that time had ravaged the building, the exterior walls resembled more of a yellowish-brown color than the original white. The men looked at one another before heading up to the grand entryway. They tried the door knob, it was locked. 

“Alohomora,” Remus said as he moved his wand in the air. They heard a deep unlocking sound as the deadbolt moved, allowing them access to the building.

They looked at one another one more time before entering the building. As they walked, Sirius performed a charm to make their footsteps silent to listening ears just in case anyone happened to be in the building. Though it looked deserted, they didn’t want to risk being caught by muggles. 

The inside of the house was dark and dank. What had once been a grand entryway was now a ghost of its former self—it’s wallpaper peeling off, the rug full of dust and debris, and the paintings on the wall faded with age and sun.

They quickly made their way through the lavishly furnished house, inspecting each room with careful and tedious scrutiny. Each room performing a battery of spells to determine whether dark magics were hidden within the bowels. When they finished the last room, they had to determine that there was nothing within the house. At that point, they inspected the grounds while under a disillusionment charm. 

They carefully avoided the caretaker’s house which had a plume of smoke billowing from the stack on the roof. Though their inspection yielded no results, they were pleased with the effectiveness of their search. Finding nothing only makes them get closer to finding something. 

They quickly made their way back down the lane to the house and to the Little Hangleton graveyard. There they found the headstones for all three Riddles that were killed that evening they had heard about from Dumbledore. None of the graves seemed disturbed but Sirius insisted on conducted a few tests before they could move on. He completed several intricate movements with his wand while mumbling something in a language that Remus and James didn’t comprehend. When nothing happened, Sirius seemed satisfied and allowed them to leave the area. 

As they walked through town again, they decided to stop for a bite to eat at a local pub. They were hoping to get more information about the Riddles and the Gaunts. 

Sirius managed to charm a waitress with what he claimed were his dazzling good looks, Remus and James suspected some magic had been involved somehow, and convinced her to join them for pint and talk about the local history and gossip. 

“Well, you see,” the waitress said in a loud whisper, “The story goes that the Gaunt girl tricked Tom Riddle into marrying her. Some suspect she drugged him and had her way about with him. Then she lied and said she was pregnant with his child in an attempt to get him to marry her, they say. Well, when he found out she wasn’t really pregnant that charade didn’t last any longer and he came back home. 

“Riddle claimed she had done some sort of magic spell on him, a love potion he claimed. That’s why so many think she drugged him. I personally think he fell in love with her but, when his parents threatened to cut him off, he left her. Money does that to people, you know. But who knows. Maybe she really was a witch. We’ll never know as she never came back. People say she died or disappeared in her despair over losing out on the Riddle fortune.”

“And what happened to the Riddles?” Remus inquired.

“Oh, well, you’ll know they all died at dinner one night, I suppose?” when they all nodded, she continued, “Well, no one knows how they died or who did it. No one was ever caught. But, of course, people talk and suspect. Frank, the gardener, he was the lead suspect for a while. That is until the doctors couldn’t prove how the Riddles all died. Scary, really. It seems they just—keeled over, dead as doornails and the like. No evidence of poisoning or physical wounds of any sort. It’s as if three perfectly healthy people just—died.”

“Was there anyone who could have benefited from the death of the Riddles?” Sirius asked seriously.

She shook her head, “No. There were no heirs to their fortune or property and they didn’t have a quarrel with anyone in town. Well, except the Gaunts, I suppose. They mustn’t have been none too happy to have the only daughter run off with the son of the Riddles and then disappear. You know, I sometimes wonder if Tom Riddle didn’t kill that girl. It’s the only reason I can think of why she never came back. She would have had rights to some of his fortune, having been his wife and everything.”

“Did Tom seem different after his return?” James asked.

“Oh yes. From what my mother told me, as I wasn’t born yet, you see, he was a different person when he came back. More reclusive, easily irritable and always looking back over his shoulder like someone was following him. You’d think the Gaunt woman was going to come kill him, you would.”

“So, who owns the Riddle house now?” Remus inquired.

“We don’t know. Someone apparently bought it about 13 years ago as an investment or tax break or something. But no one’s lived in the house since. The only person to set foot on the property since it was sold is old Frank who was kept on as a gardener. To be honest, I don’t know that the knew owner knows that Frank is still there or that he takes wages. The gent never did come see the property before buying it.”

“Are there records of the sale?”

“I’m sure there would be. Probably at the Mayor’s office across the street. She should be in until 5pm if you wanted to pop in. I’m sure she could give you more information.”

“Thank you for all your help,” Remus said as he handed her some muggle money to pay their tab, “Have a nice evening, Miss.”

The three of them quickly left the pub and looked at one another.

“So,” James said, “Should we pop in to look at the land records?” 

“We may as well,” Remus said, “It’s right there.”

Sirius agreed and they quickly made their way across the busy street and into the Mayor’s office. The office was sparsely decorated with sharp, clean furniture and paintings. The building was comprised of three total rooms including the waiting area, the bathroom, and the Mayor’s office space. They walked up to the receptionist’s desk and smiled brightly.

“Good morning,” Sirius said in a soft and silky voice, “We were hoping to inquire about the old Riddle house and who the current owner is?”

The secretary looked up at the three men and furrowed her brows, confused, “The old Riddle house? Hmm—Let me take a look here,” she turned and began looking through the computer on her desk, searching through hidden folders and documents, “Any reason you’re looking into that house?”

“Its colorful past,” Remus said before the other two could speak, “We’re writing a book about the murder.”

“Oh what about the murders?”

“The mystery of them. How they died and who may have killed them. That sort of thing. So, any information?”

“Oh, right, yes. It says here that about 14 years ago a man named Matthew Smith bought the house and has owned it ever since. Hmm, funny, there isn’t any more information about this man. Just a name and purchase agreement—he paid cash. Wow, a lot of cash.”

“Thank you for the information,” Remus said, “We’ll get out of your hair now. Have a nice day!”

As they left the muggle secretary was still reviewing the document, mumbling to herself about missing information and missing dates. 

Once they were outside they began making their way to the Gaunt house at a brisk pace, Sirius spoke first, “So, we’re in agreement that a wizard bought that house under an assumed name, right?”

James and Remus nodded as they walked but neither said a word.

As they approached the Gaunt house, more closely this time, each of them could feel the approaching sense of electricity in the air that marked the use of magic. They carefully and discretely drew their wands and held them in front of themselves, preparing for the worst. 

“I thought the son had died a few years back,” Sirius whispered.

“That’s what I was told,” James replied gravely, “Carefully. We don’t know what kind of traps could be laid out. Wait! Homenum revelio.”

When nothing happened, James nodded and they proceeded through the old, rusted gate and up the broken and grassy path. Sirius slowed as they grew closer to the door, it was almost as if he could taste the dark magic—taste that rusted, wet flavor that always came with the inky blackness. 

Just as James’ hand reached out to grab the door knob, Sirius’ arm shot out and stopped him, his eyes wide and dark, “Stop. Don’t touch it.”

“What’s wrong?” James asked as he slowly withdrew his hand.

“Sirius?” Remus said slowly as he reached his hand out to grasp Sirius’ shoulder.

Sirius slowly stepped forward and pointed his wand at the door knob and said, “Eloszlatni,” while moving his wand in an almost loopy, zig-zag formation. James and Remus watched in shock as the handle glowed a deep, dark purple before wisping away into nothingness. 

“What in the world—”

“What was that?” James asked as he turned to Sirius, “I’ve never seen a spell like that.”

“That was something I learned in—in auror training. It’s standard.”

James shook his head, “No, I never learned that when we were in training.”

“Ah, well—I, well I kind of went back to training. I sat for my test about two months ago and passed. I’ve been training to be field ready. I should be starting work in a few weeks.”

Both James and Remus’ mouths dropped open, their absolute shock, that they had missed such an important and exciting development in their friend’s life was absolutely unbelievable.

“And when exactly,” James said slowly, trying to contain himself, “were you going to tell us about this?”

Sirius shrugged, “Probably when I actually went back. I just—I’ve needed to move on for a while and I think I’ll do the most good in the auror office. But, lately, I’ve been debating going into the Department of Law Enforcement so I could help write new laws and stuff.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Remus said quietly, “You went and sat your exams, have been going to trainings, and are about to start field work, and we haven’t noticed?”

Sirius shrugged, “I’ve been keeping it pretty under wraps.”

James and Sirius both hugged Sirius at the same time, both giving him whispered congratulations and promises of a huge celebration sometime after today. Sirius blushed a little at the unexpected excitement and praise but hugged his friends back. He wasn’t sure how they would react to this change in events and, honestly, it had been giving him anxiety for a few weeks now. But now that it was out in the open and they knew, he felt relieved beyond belief and ready to be done at this ugly old house.

“Let’s finish up here so we can go have a beer, ok mates?” Sirius said with a smile as he pushed the door to the house open. 

As soon as the door swung open, they could feel the staleness in the air, tinged with the electric feel in the air that they had felt upon walking onto the property. It was stronger now, and Sirius could tell it was radiating from one particular point in the middle of the room. precaution proceeded him as he waived his wand in the air and performed several complicated movements meant to reveal any traps or spells that would impede or injure them should they move forward. When he was satisfied that there were none, he carefully stepped into the old ruin and walked slowly towards the radiating darkness.

James and Remus followed behind Sirius, their wands raised, white light emanating from the tips. They stepped carefully as they tried to avoid the various rotted floorboards that would surely lead to a broken bone or worse as they walked to the center of the room. Sirius knelt down and carefully circled his wand over a spot in the floor as he mumbled some complicated words. A small section of the floor glowed white for a moment, then dimmed, leaving a white spot on their vision. 

Sirius carefully levitated the chunk of floor away from what seemed to be an empty space beneath it. Further inspection revealed a small, ornate wooden box. Sirius carefully levitated the box out of the hole and sat it on the floor of the shack and looked at it curiously. 

“Remus, do you recognize these runes?” he asked.

Remus frowned and held his wand closer to the box, “Yes. Give me a moment and I can tell you what it says.”

Remus inspected the box for several minutes, using his wand to turn it in the air in front of him before setting it down, “I believe the box is enchanted. Whomever opens it and wears the object concealed inside of it will be infected with a flesh-eating spell. It’s slow acting but will surely kill the wearer within hours. We’ll need the counter-spell before we can risk opening it.”

“Oh! I brought a book. Hold on,” James quickly dug out one of the many books he had brought with him. This one was entitled Counter-Curses: A Better Solution to Black Magic; he opened it and riffled through the pages, “You said flesh-eating? Would that be the Arabic, Spanish, or Egyptian version of the spell?”

“I think Egyptian based on the runes surrounding the box.”

James nodded and laid the book out as he held his wand, “Hopefully I do this spell correctly,” he carefully waived his wand around the box as he said various words that Remus and Sirius didn’t recognize. When he was done, the box burst open, the lock breaking and the lid falling back, clattering against the floor.

“Well, I think you may have done it, mate,” Sirius said as he looked into the box. 

Inside the box they found a golden ring with a square, black stone set in the center. On the stone was some sort of insignia that James felt like he had seen before. It looked like some sort of triangular eye but he couldn’t quite place where he had seen it. Without thinking, without testing to be sure the curse was gone, he reached out and grabbed the ring and held it up to his eyes to look at it more closely. 

“James!” Sirius screamed as he grabbed James’ wrist. 

James looked at his hand in shock as a creeping blackness began making its way down his fingertips at an alarming rate. 

“Sirius, do something! He’ll die if it spreads!” Remus yelled.

Sirius forced James’ hand to the floor, the ring knocking out of his fingers and clattering somewhere into the darkness. Sirius raised his wand and looked his friend in the eyes—James could see panic and sadness there as well as a determination that he hadn’t seen in so many years.

“I’m so sorry about this, James.”

Sirius pointed his wand at James’ hand and suddenly, all James knew was pain and blood. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please make sure to like, follow, and review!


	49. Chapter Forty-Nine: Fiendfyre

Author’s Notes:

*I DO NOT OWN OR HAVE THE COPYRIGHTS OR TRADEMARKS TO ANY OF THE HARRY POTTER CHARACTERS, PLOTS, THEMES, OR DEVELOPMENTS. I DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHTS TO ANY PORTIONS OF THE BOOKS. ANY SIMILARITIES OR USAGES OF PORTIONS OF THE BOOKS ARE USED SIMPLY FOR FANFICTION PURPOSES.*

Hi everyone! Sorry this update is so late—I started a new job at that law firm and I’ve been getting used to my new sleep schedule and when I have down time to write. I think I’ve got it figured out now though!

Reviews: Midnitewanderer: I’m so sorry for the cliffhanger! I didn’t want to, I swear! It just felt right to leave it there. But I address all of your questions about James and Harry in this chapter! And, I promise, no cliffhanger today. As for the house—well, that will come into play around year three. Iwik: You’ll have to read and see! I hope you like how I decided to twist this chapter. Lol You’re the only one who caught on to my monthlies joke! Yes, Remus does have a way of getting information since he’s so used to gathering it for his own research. It will be helpful with the horcrux hunt. ProfessorBowties: I love your name. Bowties are cool. As for Matthew Smith—that definitely may or may not have been a subtle nod to the connection between Doctor Who and Harry Potter. I love Matt Smith but Tennant is my favorite Doctor by far. I’m glad you caught my little Easter Egg! WinkingSkeever: Ask and you shall receive ;). 

Beer Of The Week: Decadent Double Blueberry Pancake from Tire Hands Brewing Company. This double IPA is brewed with blueberries, vanilla, and milk sugar to bring to your pallet an exact replication of a stack of blueberry pancakes, complete with maple syrup and whipped cream, in beer form. If you’re looking for a crazy beer (with a decent ABV) give this one a try! It is, in my opinion, the ultimate *breakfast* beer. (Excuse my pun!)

Posting Schedule: Once a week.

Thank you for reading everyone! I’m so excited to reach FIFTY CHAPTERS next week! This is a huge milestone and I literally can’t wait to share it with all of you!

Chapter Forty-Nine: Fiendfyre

“Why is it,” Poppy said as she fussed over James, “that when something happens it’s always you three at the center of it?”

“Sorry, Poppy,” James said as he smiled wistfully as he felt the influence of the pain-deafening potion, “We don’t mean to. S’not our fault.”

“Oh, hush now,” she said, “I won’t be able to regrow the fingers, but he’ll live. That was quick thinking, Sirius. And probably the only thing you could have done, if I’m honest. I’m not sure he’ll ever play quidditch again, though. Not professionally at least. Three fingers, gone. Honestly.”

Sirius frowned, “I was afraid of that. I had hoped that, by using Diffindo you would be able to regrow the fingers. Is it because of the nature of the curse that was on the ring?”

“Exactly that. Because the curse had already killed the muscle and flesh in those three fingers, I wouldn’t have been able to grow them back regardless of the charm used to remove them. I actually had to take a bit more than you did to be sure that there were no remnants of the curse. It was quick thinking, Sirius. You saved his life.”

“I s’pose I owe you one, S’rus,” James slurred and giggled.

“Yeah, you do,” Sirius said, “You owe me bigtime, Prongs. I won’t ever let you forget that. Poppy, I need to go up and meet Remus and Albus. Let me know if anything changes? And has anyone told Harry?”

“No, we haven’t informed Mr. Potter yet. It’s late as it is and we will inform him in the morning.”

Just then there was a loud bang as the doors to the Hospital Wing slammed open and an irate and fear-fueled Minerva strode through the entrance, her eyes scanning the room until she found the boys. Her eyes widened as she rushed over to them; her mouth set in a tight line.

“What happened? You two graduated—I shouldn’t still be finding you in the hospital wing!”

“Chill, Minnie. We were doing a thing for Dumbledore.”

“A thing? A thing? What thing could have resulted in James losing three fingers?” Minerva stressed the last three words as she spoke. 

Sirius flashed an award winning smile and held up his hands, “You know we can’t talk about that, Minnie. Unless you know about it—which I don’t think you do.”

Minerva frowned and looked at James, “He’ll be alright, right?”

“He’ll be fine,” Sirius assured her.

Minerva nodded before turning on her heel and heading toward the door. Before she left, she turned back and looked at Sirius, “Don’t let yourselves get killed because of Albus’ fantasies. His projects and endeavors are important and groundbreaking but that doesn’t mean you should die for them.”

“Minnie, the thing you need to understand is that, sometimes, some things are worth dying for.”

~ID~

Later that evening Sirius and Remus found themselves seated in front of Dumbledore’s desk, the ring they found at the Gaunt house sitting between all of them. Remus was staring down at it with disdain as he attempted to make out what the marking on the stone was. He knew James had recognized it, that was the only reason he would have been possessed to pick the ring up before making sure there were no curses or traps attached to it. But, the longer he looked the more frustrated he became. 

What Remus found even more frustrating, however, was how Dumbledore was almost reveling in the sight of the ring in front of them. Remus was concerned that the usually calm and reserved headmaster was staring at the ring with greed and lust. Sirius must have noticed this unusual demeanor as well because he cleared his throat and looked at Dumbledore expectantly.

Dumbledore looked up at the two men with glazed, far away, eyes, “Yes, right. Now that everything is settled and James is resting comfortably, why don’t you two tell me about what happened?”

Sirius and Remus nodded, their faces solemn, as Sirius quickly recounted their adventures. He explained what they found out about the ownership of the Riddle House and the proximity of the graves as well as the rumors from the little town. It didn’t take him long to explain everything while watching Dumbledore’s face for any signs of surprise or intrigue. 

“And then James—he just—he picked up the ring. The sodding git picked the damn thing up after I told him it would be cursed. I have no idea what was going through his head.”

“Sirius,” Dumbledore started as he leaned back in his chair, “let’s not be too harsh on James. Better men than he have fallen pray to Lord Voldemort’s traps and schemes.”

“Yes,” Sirius said slowly, “but those people were unaware of his traps and schemes. James knew because I had just told him about the danger but he picked it up anyway. And now he’s lost three fingers and, basically, his career.”

“I would have done the same thing had I been in his position,” Dumbledore admitted, “This ring is alluring and the power it possesses is unlike any other.”

“What sort of power does it hold?” Remus asked, “I’ve been trying to figure out what the rune or insignia or, whatever, says but I’ve never seen it.”

Dumbledore smiled, “I’ll have to test it. But if this is the object I believe it may be, it is certainly extremely powerful and shouldn’t fall into the wrong hands.”

Sirius crossed his arms, “You’re being intentionally vague, Albus. I thought we had all come to an agreement to be honest with each other, for Harry’s sake.”

Albus nodded, “And I will maintain that promise, I assure you. I need to conduct some thorough testing on this object before I can give any information. Until then, we need to work on destroying the horcrux.”

Remus frowned, “And how are we doing that? From my reading, there aren’t many ways we can do that.”

“Fiendfyre, basilisk venom,” Sirius listed, “two extremely rare poisons that, quite honestly, probably can’t be made any more, and a few spells that are even more dangerous than Fiendfyre. How exactly are we going to get any of that? As for making Fiendfyre—I don’t think I could control that curse even if I could summon it.”

“Do we even know a safe place to use the curse?” Remus asked, “I mean, we could accidently burn the entire castle down if we aren’t careful.”

“That is true, Remus. However, I think if we emptied a classroom, and both of you were on standby with the counter-charm, we would be safe in attempting to utilize the curse.”

Remus paled, “In the castle? What about the students?”

“We will be able to keep everything under control, have no fear. We managed to control an outbreak of Fiendfyre several years ago when a young Slytherin student accidently lost control of the curse; we’ll be able to manage it this time.”

“And if we can’t? People could die.”

“But when we succeed—yes, when, Remus, not if, we would be destroying Lord Voldemort forever.”

Despite Remus’ objections the four men ended up in an unused classroom devoid of all furniture and people in a secluded area of the castle. They had waited for James to recover enough to be able to stand, without fainting, so that he could watch the demise of the man who had hunted his son and murdered his wife. And, though he was pale, James looked determined and energized. 

“Are we absolutely sure about doing this?” Remus asked cautiously, “Once we start the curse, there’s no telling how out of control it can get.”

“Do you have a basilisk handy, Moony? Because I sure don’t,” Sirius replied. 

“Well, no. But there are other options. Certain poisons and objects—”

“We wouldn’t be able to make those poisons,” Sirius said darkly, “I know all about them. The ingredients—we can’t.”

“What do you mean? I’m sure we could find any kind of rare ingre—”

“It’s not an issue of them being rare,” Dumbledore assured Remus.

Sirius nodded, “It’s a mater of morality. Sure, we could easily make those poisons. But at the cost of innocent lives,” Remus paled, “One of them requires a full, human brain taken from a live victim. Another—I can’t even go into detail about that one.”

“A human—from a live person? I—how did anyone discover this poison?”

“The Mayans were well known for their—off color experimentation during their height of power.”

“And the Black Family vault doesn’t have any?” James asked curiously.

Sirius shook his head, “I destroyed all of that stuff before I knew what use it could be put to.”

“In all of the vaults?” Remus asked, stalling for time.

“What do you mean all of them? There’s only one and then my personal vault.”

“Wouldn’t you have inherited Bellatrix Lestrange’s vault since she had no heirs since she’s imprisoned for life?” 

Sirius hesitated for a moment, “I’m not sure. I honestly didn’t look into it.”

“Look,” James said wearily, “even if Sirius has control and ownership over her account, it would take weeks to clear that bureaucratic red tape. I don’t know about you three, but after reading what can happen when you’re around a horcrux too much I’m in kind of a hurry to get rid of it and be done. I’m not sure I want to do it here at Hogwarts where kids can get injured though.”

Remus turned to Dumbledore and asked, “Are we sure there isn’t a safer place we can go? A field somewhere? A forest?”

“We could go to a desert,” Sirius supplied helpfully, “I’m also not keen to release a rampaging magical fire on unsuspecting students. Plus, Harry’s here. What if he gets hurt?”

Somehow, James paled more than he already was, “We’re not doing it here. We can’t. Absolutely not.”

After much debate, the men agreed that performing the curse in a room at Hogwarts was too dangerous. After an even longer debate, they agreed to move to a deserted island off the coast. Once they had warded the island from muggles and checked to be absolutely sure that it was devoid of life. 

They quickly magically cleared a large area on the island, moving trees and rocks away from them so they had space to work. In the center of the clearing, Dumbledore placed the small, golden object, while Remus, James, and Sirius stood on the outskirts, their wands ready. 

“Ready?” Dumbledore asked as he walked back towards the men. They nodded and gripped their wands tighter. 

Dumbledore lifted his wand and cried out the curse and the effect was immediate. A cone of fire swirled out of his wand like a whip, white hot and billowing. With great effort, Dumbledore moved his wand down and pointed it towards where the horcrux laid. From the cone of fire shot out a blazing chimera which charged straight toward the ring. Suddenly, another animal leapt from the wand—a fiery dragon burst forth and flew through the air, banking right and turning back towards the men. 

“Hold your positions!” Sirius yelled over the roar of the fire, the light from the dragon singeing their hair and heating their skin. 

The chimera ran over the horcrux, kicking it up into the air before tearing off toward the trees, setting the ground ablaze behind it. The dragon overhead roared in annoyance, a burst of fire spitting from its mouth just as Dumbledore fell to his knees, another animal forming out of his wand. 

It seemed to James that everything was on fire. The heat of the animals was causing him to sweat perversely as he quickly thought about what to do next. From somewhere next to him in the blinding light a shield charm was erected between Dumbledore’s prone form and the animals in an attempt to protect him from the scalding fire. The dragon dove toward the shimmering shield, hitting it hard and causing cracks to form in its seemingly impenetrable surface. 

“Did we get the horcrux?” Sirius shouted to the other men as he struggled to keep the shield charm going.

“Who cares?” Remus shouted back, “End it! End it now!”

James and Remus raised their wands as jets of frozen air burst from the tips, blowing on the fires closest to them, causing them to grow exponentially in size. 

“What the fuck!” James shouted as he dove away from the growing fire, “That should have stopped the flames, not made them worse!”

“Damn it! We didn’t do it right! Again!” Remus coughed and choked over the black ash and smoke.

It was difficult to see now; the ash the fire was spitting out was clogging the air and blocking out the sky above them. James coughed on the congealed air as he pointed his wand towards the closest fiery animal and shouted the spell, causing what looked like white hot fire to shoot out of his wand and collide with the orange body of the flaming chimera. But it wasn’t white fire—the jet of flames erupting from his wand were so ice cold that his wand was cold to the touch. James gripped his wand tighter and forced more of the white, flaming ice towards the Fiendfyre and watched in elation as the chimera dissipated in a puff of black ash. A burst of hope shot through James as he turned his wand toward the Dragon and obliterated it. He carefully and methodically used the ice to extinguish every last flame from the Fiendfyre, taking care to be sure that none was left to wreak havoc on any unsuspecting people or animals before he collapsed on the ground.

~ID~

“I told you that mirror was no good,” Draco commented. Harry had just finished telling Draco, Ron, and Hermione about his experiences the other night. Hermione had been none too pleased to discover that both Harry and Draco had been sneaking around the school. Ron hadn’t said anything at all in response—Harry suspected that he was upset that Harry hadn’t also invited him to go look at the mirror. But, really, three people would have been hard to sneak to the classroom and Harry had figured that Draco would enjoy the experience better than Ron would. 

“Honestly, you’re lucky you didn’t lose Gryffindor and Ravenclaw more points being out of bed after hours,” Hermione scalded them. 

Harry rolled his eyes, “It was fine. Dumbledore didn’t seem mad—he just didn’t want me going back again. And, besides, I couldn’t even if I wanted to. He said the mirror was being moved.”

“Well, good. You shouldn’t be out that late.”

“Give it a rest, Hermione. It’s not like he got in trouble or anything. He was looking at a mirror,” Ron said exasperatedly.

As term got underway, the group once again found themselves in the library for the few spare minutes they had between classes in an attempt to figure out why Dumbledore would have the mirror of Erised and what purpose it served in guarding the stone. Harry and Draco had even less time than the other two to do research because of quidditch practices. Both teams were aiming to make it to the quidditch finales and their captains seemed to be working them even harder than before. 

It was at Harry’s next practice that Wood dropped the bombshell on their team. Fred and George had been dive-bombing each other during practice, setting Wood off when he made the announcement. 

“Would you two stop messing around!” he yelled, “That’s exactly the sort of thing that’ll lose us the match! Snape’s refereeing this time, and he’ll be looking for any excuse to knock points off Gryffindor!” 

This time, George really did fall off his broom. Luckily, he was only a few feet off the ground and wasn’t injured in the fall.

“Snape’s refereeing?” he spluttered through a mouthful of mud, “When’s he ever refereed a quidditch match? He’s not going to be fair if we might overtake Slytherin in the cup!”

The rest of the team landed next to George to complain, too.

“It’s not my fault,” he said, “We’ve just got to make sure we play a clean game, so Snape hasn’t got an excuse to pick on us. 

After practice, most of the team held back in the locker rooms to talk to one another—mostly to contemplate what Snape was going to do to them during the next match—but Harry left as soon as he was changed and clean. He quickly made his way to the castle and found an empty classroom to hide in. 

Once the door was safely shut, Harry pulled out his mirror and called for his father. He frowned when James didn’t answer. Harry quickly utilized the messaging system and wrote on the frosted glass for James to call him back when he had time. 

Harry sighed and let his hands drop to his lap. He stared at the empty mirror for what seemed like ages before lifting it again. And when her face appeared in the glass he let out a small, relieved sigh.

“Harry! Is everything ok? You’ve only been back at school for a few days now.”

“Hey Ginny,” Harry said with a small smile, “Mostly—well, no, not really. I just found out that Snape is going to referee our next quidditch match and my dad isn’t answering my calls. I’m worried—he’s never ignored me before.”

“I’m sure he’s just busy. Quidditch is in full season now so he’s probably training. Why is Snape refereeing your next match? Doesn’t Madam Hooch normally do that?”

“She does but I guess Dumbledore is worried about what happened during my last match or something. Quidditch is the one thing I have at this school that I’m free. And now he’s going to ruin it.”

Ginny frowned, “Maybe it won’t be that bad?”

“I don’t know, Gin. The last time he thought my potion wasn’t up to snuff he accidentally knocked my cauldron off of my work table and, since I didn’t have anything to turn in, I got zero marks for the day.” 

“He does that on purpose?”

“All the time. There isn’t a class where he doesn’t try to goad me.”

“Will James be at your match?”

“Of course—dad comes to all of my matches,” Harry replied, unsure of what she was getting at.

“Well, I doubt Snape would try anything while your dad was in the stands. From what you’ve told me, he and Snape don’t get along well, do they? James is probably looking for an excuse to ream Snape out and maybe this will give him the opportunity.”

“I suppose,” Harry said slowly, “But that doesn’t mean Snape won’t make it easy on Gryffindor.”

“No, it doesn’t. But that also doesn’t mean you have to give up, either,” Ginny replied with a mischievous glint in her eye. 

Harry smiled at the prospect of winning their upcoming match and overtaking Slytherin for the house cup right in front of Snape—and he couldn’t do anything about it. After talking to Ginny for nearly a half an hour Harry felt significantly better about his decision to play in the upcoming match. If anything, he hoped to be able to steal the win from right under Snape’s greasy nose. 

~ID~

James once again awoke to find himself nestled into a warm bed in the infirmary. He glanced around, blurry eyed, until he found his glasses sitting on the table next to him. He quickly put them on and found Remus and Sirius sitting by his bed side, both of them engrossed in reading the Daily Prophet and a muggle magazine respectively. He slowly sat up, taking care not to jostle his body too much, unsure of what damage he had done to it this time. But, as he wiggled them, he was pleased to find out that he didn’t lose any more fingers during their latest endeavor. 

At the rustling of his sheets, Remus and Sirius both looked over to the bed, surprised to see James moving. He suspected that they had anticipated him being asleep for longer than he ended up being. 

Remus carefully folded his newspaper and set it aside, “How are you feeling, Prongs?”

James shrugged and stretched his limbs, “Sore, I suppose. What happened?”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Sirius asked.

“Uh, well, I had just figured out how the charm worked and had cleared the last of the fire and then—nothing.”

“Right. So that’s pretty much all of it. Madam Pomfrey says you overexerted your magic by using such a complex and powerful spell for so long. You shouldn’t have put out all of the Fiendfyre by yourself. You’ve been sleeping for a few days now—it’s Friday.”

James quickly pulled himself into a sitting position, his eyes bulging, “I’ve been asleep for three days?”

“Yeah, well, we expected you to be out for a full week, mate. So we’re a little surprised you’re awake,” Sirius interjected.

“We’ve been giving you replenishing potions and all that, but, still. Like Sirius said, we didn’t expect you to wake up so soon.”

“Well it’s a good thing I did because Harry’s match is tomorrow, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. And you’ll never believe what’s happened,” Sirius added, the anger plain on his face, “Ol’ Snivelly is refereeing the game. Apparently Dumbledore thinks having Snape referee will deter anything from happening to Harry again. I don’t see how.”

“That git is refereeing the match? As if he’ll be fair or reasonable. If he so much as lays a finger—no so much as looks at Harry for anything other than quidditch purposes, he’ll have me to deal with.”

“You’ll be in no fit state,” Remus said.

“There wasn’t any one else fit for the post?” James asked angrily.

“Apparently not.”

“Bloody hell,” he raked his fingers through his tousled hair, “Did we at least destroy it?”

Remus and Sirius beamed at James, nodding, “Turned it into a puddle of gold.”

“That’s it? He’s gone?” 

“He’s gone,” Remus assured James, “Gone, gone, gone!”

“Without the horcrux, there’s nothing else tethering Voldemort to life. He’s gone,” Sirius affirmed.

~ID~

Harry knew, when they wished him good luck outside the locker rooms that weekend, that Ron, Draco, and Hermione were wondering whether they’d ever see him alive again. Though this didn’t help him feel any better, Harry was still confident that he would be able to win todays match and rub it in the nose of that greasy git. 

As Harry was getting ready in the locker rooms, Wood pulled him aside, “Don’t want to pressure you, Potter, but if we ever need an early capture of the snitch, it’s now. Finish the game before Snape can favor Hufflepuff too much.”

“The whole school’s out there!” Fred exclaimed, “Even—blimey—Dumbledore’s come to watch! Harry, did you know he was coming? He’s sitting with your dad and uncles.”

“Dumbledore?” Harry frowned and moved quickly to the exit of the changing rooms that looked out onto the pitch. Sure enough, Harry saw in the top box the silver-haired, lanky form of Albus Dumbledore seated next to a pale looking James and a concerned Sirius and Remus. As he caught sight of James, Harry briefly wondered why he’d failed to return Harry’s call from the other day. It was unlike his father and, now that he could see James was at least alive, it concerned him. 

Then the realization dawned on him and he let out a barking, almost crazed laugh. He was safe. There was simply no way that Snape would try to hurt him while Dumbledore was in the stands. Perhaps this was the reason that Snape looked so angry when the teams finally took the field. 

Back in the stands, Hermione moved her omnioculors around as she scanned the crowd. She nudged Ron and Draco in the stomachs with her elbows as she caught sight of the headmaster in the stands, “Look! Dumbledore came!”

Surprise flickered across their faces as they registered this fact. Then Ron smiled, “Of course. That’s why Snape looks so pissed—he won’t try anything too bad if Dumbledore is watching. And look, James, Remus, and Sirius came, too. Harry’s going to be fine. Ouch!”

The trio watched the match unfold, listening intently to Lee Jordan announcing for the spectators. 

“And it’s Hufflepuff with the quaffle. Speeding down the pitch and she aims and—a nice steal from Johnson! And—oh no! Weasley, whichever one it is, just hit a bludger that nearly missed hitting Professor Snape and—Come off it! You prejudiced—”

“Jordan!” Minerva shouted.

“Sorry professor! I meant to say, that conniving, Gryffindor hating—”

“Jordan! I’m warning you!” 

“Right, professor. Professor Snape unjustly awarded Hufflepuff a penalty shot. And—they missed. That’s good luck for Gryffindor.”

Just then, the three friends saw Harry go into a spectacular dive, which drew gasps and cheers from the large crowd. Harry streaked toward the ground like a bullet, directly at Snape’s oblivious form. As Snape turned his broomstick he barely caught the glimpse of scarlet careen past him, missing him by inches. Then, the next second, Harry pulled out of his dive, his arm raised in triumph, the snitch clasped firmly in his raised hand. The stands erupted; it had to be a record, no one could remember the snitch ever being caught so quickly. 

As he flew to the ground Harry jumped off his broom with a few feet left to go. He could hardly believe it—the game was over. It had barely lasted five minutes but he had come out unscathed. And now Gryffindor was in the lead for the house cup and his housemates flooded the field. Nearby, Harry saw Snape, white-faced and tight-lipped, leaving the field, his cloak billowing behind him. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up into Dumbledore’s smiling face, his father and uncles racing to catch up to him in the background.

“Well done,” Dumbledore said quietly, so that only Harry could hear, “Nice to see you haven’t been brooding about that mirror…been keeping busy…excellent…”

“Harry!” James called as he ran up, huffing and puffing from the run. Somehow, he looked even more pale than he had been when he was sitting in the stands, “Harry that was brilliant! A spectacular catch!” James quickly engulfed Harry in a large hug, squeezing him tightly against his chest.

When James let go of him, Harry frowned, “Why didn’t you return my call?”

“What call?” 

“I called you the other day and you didn’t answer. I left you a message.”

“I didn’t get a message,” James said slowly as he began searching his pockets for his mirror. He frowned in confusion when he came up empty, “I—I don’t know where my mirror is. Moony, padfoot, do you have it?”

They both shook their heads, “You might have lost it over the last week. It was quite chaotic,” Remus supplied, “We can make you a new one, though. It’ll take a day or so before it’s up and running.”

“Yeah,” James said, concerned. Hopefully no one found the mirror just lying around. The good news is that, if anyone did find it, they probably wouldn’t know how to use it.

As James pulled his hands back out of his pockets Harry cried out, “Dad! What happened to your hand?”

Taken aback, James asked, “What do you mean?” he looked down at his hands briefly before remembering, “Oh, right. I was trying out a new spell and, well, it didn’t go as expected. I—lost three fingers. A healer tried to regrow them but, well, I guess that serves as a warning to not perform spells if you don’t know what they do,” James lied.

“What about quidditch?” Harry asked, concerned.

“I won’t be able to play anymore. It’s not a big deal—I make enough that I don’t have to worry about working until I find something I like to do, so I’m not worried too much.”

“Yeah, but you loved playing.”

“I’m just happy it was only some fingers, kiddo. It could have been a lot worse. I mean, at least I’m alive.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true,” Harry agreed. 

“Anyway, why don’t you call me in a few days to catch up? Moony, Padfoot, and I have some stuff to take care of. We’ll talk to you soon, ok?”

“Sure. See you guys soon.”

As they walked away Harry shook his head. He knew there was more to the story than they were letting on. He tended to be unobservant and a bit oblivious, but even he knew something bigger was going on. He sighed, hopefully they would trust him enough to tell him soon. He wasn’t sure he liked having secrets in the family. 

~ID~

Some time later Harry left the locker room. He had been the last person to finish up due to his long conversation with his parents, but it had been worth the extra time. He missed his dad and uncles while he was at school. Things weren’t the same without having them all around every day. Sure, Uncle Moony was a professor and Harry could visit him any time he pleased, but it wasn’t the same when his father and Uncle Padfoot weren’t around, too. He loves Remus, but there’s just a different dynamic when they were all together. 

As he thought about his family Harry made his way to the broom shed to lock up his Nimbus before heading back to the castle. He quickly walked over the damp grass, the cold wetness encroaching on his warm socks, making his toes squish in his trainers. Just as he reached the shed he looked up and noticed a hooded figure coming swiftly out of the castle, sweeping down the grand staircase and onto the front lawns. 

Harry could tell the figure didn’t want to be seen as it walked as quickly as possible toward the forbidden forest. Then, Harry recognized the long striding prowl of the cloaked figure. Snape. Snape was sneaking into the forest while the entire school was at dinner, undetected. What was he up to?

Harry quickly grabbed his Nimbus and swung his leg over the handle before kicking off the ground. He glided silently over the castle, keeping an eye on Snape’s cloaked form entering the forest at a run. Harry hesitated for a moment—was this something he should do alone? He shook his head, he wouldn’t have this opportunity again and he had to know what was so important to cause Snape to sneak out during dinner. 

He glided over the trees, trying to catch a glimpse of Snape but the forest was so thick it was nearly impenetrable. As he circled lower, he caught wind of voices in the trees. He glided toward them and landed noiselessly in a towering beech tree and climbed nimbly along one of the branches, trying to see through the leaves. 

In the shadowy clearing Harry could see Snape standing, but he wasn’t alone. Quirrell was there, too. Harry couldn’t make out the look on his face, but he was stuttering worse than ever. Harry strained to catch what they were saying.

“…d-don’t know why you wanted t-t-to meet here of all p-places, Severus…”

“Oh, I thought we’d keep this private,” Snape said, his voice icy, “Students aren’t supposed to know about the Philosopher’s Stone after all.”

Harry leaned forward and nearly fell out of the tree at the mention of the Stone, a few leaves falling off of the branch he was perched on. Luckily, neither man noticed this. 

“Have you found out how to get past that beast of Hagrid’s yet?” Snape inquired cooly.

“B-b-but Severus, I—”

“You don’t want me as your enemy, Quirrell,” Snape said, taking a step toward him.

“I-I don’t know what you—”

An owl hooted loudly, causing Harry to nearly fall out of the tree again. he steadied himself and heard Snape continuing, oblivious to the interruption, “—your little bit of hocus-pocus. I’m waiting.”

“B-but I d-d-don’t—”

“Very well,” Snape cut in, “We’ll have another little chat soon, when you’ve had time to think things over and decided where your loyalties lie.”

He threw his cloak over his head and strode out of the clearing. It was almost dark now, but Harry could see Quirrell, standing quite still as though he was petrified.  
~ID~

“Harry! Where have you been?” Hermione squeaked as Harry took a seat between her and Draco at the Gryffindor table.

“We won! You won! We won!” Ron chanted from across the table as he put his silverware down.

“Never mind that now, come with me,” Harry said as he grabbed a sandwich off of a platter and stood back up again, “I have something to tell you.”

They all frowned but followed him from the room. They wandered the castle for a few minutes before finding an empty classroom and shutting the door behind them. Once they were settled, Harry quickly told them about what happened in the forest. When he was done, he was met with open mouths of shock from all of them.

“You went into the forest?” Hermione asked, incredulated, “You could have gotten hurt! Or worse, in so much trouble!”

“Hermione,” Ron said exasperatedly, “You’re missing the point.”

Draco nodded, “Yeah, Harry shouldn’t have done that but now we know that it is the Philosopher’s Stone that’s being guarded and that Snape is trying to force Quirrell to help him get to it.”

“Yes, that’s right,” Hermione conceded, “And now we know that there’s more guarding the stone than that cerberus. It sounds like there are several wards in place to prevent theft but that Snape has figured out how to bypass most of them already. This isn’t good.”

“So the stone is only safe so long as Quirrell stands up to Snape,” Draco added solemnly.

“It’ll be gone by next Tuesday,” Ron said in a hollow voice and Harry couldn’t help but agree with him.

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	50. Chapter Fifty: Hagrid's Little Secret

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I’m so sorry for such a delay in this chapter. No, I haven’t died and I’m not ill. Honestly? I got somewhat depressed over the last few weeks while waiting for the Pennsylvania Bar results to come out. On top of that, I’d been working at a firm as a temporary assistant while I waited and I haven’t worked a fulltime schedule in years. It’s been a lot of changes for me over the last few weeks. The biggest, I think, is that I am OFFICIALLY a lawyer! I passed the bar exam and I have sent in my paperwork for formal admittance and am officially an Esquire! I believe I’m getting an offer from the firm I’m at and I’ve been waiting on that for the last week. The meeting is Monday so I’m crossing my fingers as I love it there and don’t want to leave. 

Based on the above, I hope you will all forgive my lapse in chapter updates. I promise I’m not going to suddenly stop working on my story and I’m working on getting back to my regular, weekly update schedule. 

On another positive note, THIS IS CHAPTER FIFTY! What a development! I’m so excited to hit this milestone with all of you and during such a momentous month! I want to thank everyone who has been with me for each and every chapter whether you’ve just found my story or have been there since the beginning. I hope you all stay “until the very end”. 

Beer of the week: Mad Elf. I have to do it, I’m sorry for those of you who are so over this brew but! It’s the beer of Christmas! And with Christmas this coming Friday I have to give it a review. Troegs’ Mad Elf is definitely a must have for Christmas. Brewed with Cherries and PA Honey it is a sweet and strong beer clocking in at over 11% ABV! Personally, I love mixing this beer half and half with their Chocolate Stout for a chocolate covered cherry concoction. It’s absolutely divine. 

Reviews: Iwik: I feel like that’s the question of the year! See what I did there? I’m very excited to get into that drowning realization for the Marauders. Hopefully it’s not too devastating. As for the mirror, we’ll have to see—spoilers! ProfessorBowties: Ask and you shall receive! And, yes, knowing there’s a basilisk but not being able to utilize it was absolutely difficult. I had to really think about how to get around that major, missing plot point. I hope you like this update! WinkingSkeever: Ask and you shall receive ;) RauthrMystic: I’m so glad you’ve liked my story so far! I promise that, as Harry and Co. grow and learn, there will be MUCH more magic involved. I did not write out Draco’s try out session, so you didn’t miss it. I’m just not a huge fan of writing quidditch scenes. It was an uneventful try out and he blew Cho out of the water. 

Thank you everyone for sticking with me through fifty chapters of Ignoring Destiny! Only a few more until we reach the end of PS! I love you all and please enjoy this next chapter!

*Keep any eye out for a one-shot story I’ve been working on when I have writer’s block! I’m featuring your favorite set of mischievous twins! FOLLOW ME AS AN AUTHOR FOR THE NOTIFICATION*

Update Schedule: (hopefully) once per week.

Chapter Fifty: Hagrid’s Little Secret

Over the next several weeks Harry and company did their best to keep tabs on Snape and Quirrell. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco each took turns checking on Fluffy in the third-floor corridor each time they passed by. And each of them had begun giving Quirrell their own forms of encouragement in the hopes that it would give him the strength needed to keep Snape at bay. And, with Snape sweeping about in his ever-consistent foul mood, they were sure that, for now, the stone was safe where it was. 

As the weeks brought them into the first tines of spring, the four of them had to begin thinking more and more about their upcoming exams. Hermione and Draco had worked together to create an elaborate study system for all of them to utilize. This schedule spaced out subjects and studying so that they only studied each subject for a maximum of an hour at a time to “keep their brain active” Hermione explained. 

The four of them found that they were now, once again, spending all of their free time inside the library attempting to get through all the extra homework their professors had begun assigning to them. That’s where they found themselves late one particularly fine and sunny afternoon as Ron shoved his book away and threw his quill to the floor.

“I’ll never remember this,” he burst out as he folded his arms and looked longingly out the window, “There’s too much information to remember for just one exam. How do they expect me to remember all of this for, what, 7 classes?”

Draco rolled his eyes, “That’s why we made the study plan. Remember?” 

“You mean this torture device?” Ron asked as he indicated the color-coded sheet in front of him, “Rubbish.”

Ron and Draco bickered over the relevancy of the study plan, debating whether they were trying to pack too much into each day. Hermione backed Draco up in between paragraphs and wand movements. Harry didn’t even bother to look up from his work until he heard Ron call out. 

“Hagrid! What are you doing in the library?” 

“Oh, ‘ello you four. Jus’ lookin’,” he said in a shifty voice that immediately peaked their interest, “An’ what’re you lot up ter?” he looked suddenly suspicious. “Yer not still lookin’ fer Nicolas Flamel, are yeh?”

“Oh, no, we found him ages ago,” Ron said impressively, “And we know what that cerberus is hiding, it’s the Philosopher’s st—”

“Shhh!” Hagrid shushed loudly, “Listen—come an’ see me later, I’m not promisin’ I’ll tell yeh anythin’, mind, but don’ go rabbitin’ about it in here. Students aren’ s’pposed ter know. they’ll think I’ve told yeh about, well—yeh know.”

Draco frowned, “Hagrid, that’s the dragons section you’ve just come out of. Are you researching them or something?”

“How do you know that’s the dragon’s section?” Hermione asked.

“I was looking up information about dragon’s blood—Hagrid, why would you be in there?”

“Jus’ some light readin’,” he replied evasively, “I’ll see you four later!”

The group watched silently as Hagrid bustled out of the library, a book quite clearly concealed under his coat. 

“What was that all about?” Harry asked, “I know he’s always wanted a dragon, but why suddenly do more research now?”

Draco paled, “You don’t think—”

“No way,” Harry shook his head, “Hagrid wouldn’t. He knows it’s illegal.”

“Not to mention extremely dangerous,” Ron added thoughtfully, “You should see the burns Charlie gets from some of the wild ones in Romania.”

“There’s just no way Hagrid got a dragon’s egg,” Hermione whispered, “Where would he have even found one? They’re extremely rare.”

“He could have bought one,” Draco said off-handedly, “You can buy almost everything you want in Knockturn Alley.”

“Like what?” Hermione asked, confused, “What’s Knockturn Alley?”

“It’s the darker part of Diagon Alley. Where you can buy dark artifacts and books and stuff. Father goes a lot.”

“What would Mr. Malfoy need in a place like that?” Hermione asked as she wrinkled her nose.

Draco shrugged, “This and that. I don’t pay attention when we go, to be honest.”

“Well,” Harry interrupted, “Whatever Hagrid is doing, we’ll find out soon.”

And soon it was—about an hour later the children found themselves traipsing through the sunny gardens and vegetable patches to the hut at the edge of the forbidden forest. When they walked up, Harry knew immediately that something was wrong—the curtains were drawn and, despite the warmth outside, the fire seemed to be going inside the building. Harry wondered if Hagrid was sweating himself out for some reason. And when Hagrid did finally let them in, Harry’s suspicions about the heat were confirmed as the stifling blaze overtook his senses.

“So,” Hagrid started as he took a seat in his large armchair, “yeh wanted to ask me somethin’?”

“Yes. We were wondering if you could tell us what’s guarding the Stone apart from the cer—Fluffy.”

Hagrid frowned, “O’ course I can’t. Number one, I don’ know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn’ tell yeh if I could. That Stone’s here for a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts—I s’ppose yeh’ve worked that out an’ all, haven’ yeh? Beats me how yeh even know about Fluffy.”

“Oh, come on, Hagrid,” Hermione said in a soft, un-Hermione-ish voice, “You might not want to tell us, but you do know. And, besides, we really only want to know who else is helping Dumbledore—who else he trusted apart from you.”

Hagrid’s beard twitched as he tried to conceal the smile spreading on his face, “Well—I don’ s’ppose it would hurt anything ter tell yeh—yeah. Let’s see…he borrowed Fluffy from me…then some o’ the teachers helped…Professor Sprout—Flitwick—McGonagall—Quirrell—an’ Dumbledore himself. Hang on—I’ve forgotten someone. Oh, yeah, Professor Snape.”

“Snape?” Harry asked, incredulous. 

“Yeah—yer not still on abou’ that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he’s not about ter steal it.”

“I don’t know about that,” Draco stated, “I don’t trust Snape. He’s a Death Eater, you know.”

“Come off it—Dumbledore trusts Snape. He came over to our side durin’ the war.”

Draco shook his head, “No he didn’t. Snape was a double agent. He convinced Dumbledore that he had changed his ways towards the end of the war on the Dark Lord’s orders. The Dark Lord needed a contact, a spy, inside of Hogwarts and Snape had the necessary qualifications.”

“I think yer getting’ yer facts wrong, Draco,” Hagrid said, his anger rising.

“I’m not,” Draco said confidently, “Snape told the Dark Lord about Harry being the one to kill him. Without that information, the Dark Lord couldn’t have prepared for that possibility.”

At those words, Harry’s head snapped up, his green eyes dark as he looked at his friend, “What do you mean, he told Voldemort about me?”

Draco shrugged, “I don’t know specifics because I was the same age as you when it happened, but in my lessons Father always talks about Snape in high regard because of his services to the Dark Lord. All I know is that Snape ratted you out during the war.”

“Snape told you-know-who on Dumbledore’s orders,” Hagrid argued, “Yeh wouldn’ understand.”

“Snape didn’t begin spying for the Dark Lord until plans for Harry’s murder were in motion. Not to mention that Snape never told Dumbledore—or anyone in the Order—about the Dark Lord finding out about where the Potters were hiding.”

“Only Pettigrew knew ‘bout that.”

“No. The Dark Lord’s entire inner circle knew. That includes Snape.”

Hagrid shook his head, “Come off it. There’s no way.”

“I’m sorry,” Harry said angrily, “Can we go back to the part where Snape sold my family out?”

Draco frowned, “What about it?”

“He told Voldemort about my family,” Harry announced every word. 

“Yes. He did.”

“He sold my family out, he was in Voldemort’s inner circle as a Death Eater, and was potentially a spy for Voldemort—but no one thinks he’s after the Stone?”

“He was workin’ on Dumbledore’s orders!” Hagrid said, “An’ that’s enough of that!”

“It’s not—”

“Hagrid,” Ron said slowly. He had clearly not been paying attention to anything that had been said, “What is that?” he asked as he pointed into the fireplace. 

As his anger rose, Harry turned to look where Ron was pointing, prepared to state that it didn’t matter and continue the conversation. Then he laid eyes on a enormous, onyx egg nestled in the coals of the fire. 

“Ah—that’s—er—”

“Where did you get it?” Ron asked as he crouched over the fire to get a closer look, “It must have cost a fortune.”

“I won it. Las’ night. I was down in the village havin’ a few drinks an’ got into a game o’ cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad to be rid of it, ter be honest.”

“But what are you going to do with it when it’s hatched?” Hermione asked as she paled at the prospects. 

“Well, I’ve bin doin’ some readin’. I got this book at the library—it’s a bit outta date, o’ course, but it’s all in here. From what I read, this ‘ere is a Norwegian Ridgeback. They’re rare, them.”

“Hagrid,” Draco said slowly, “You don’t see anything—er, problematic—with this situation?”

“What do yeh mean?”

“Hagrid,” Hermione said, “you live in a wooden house.” 

Hagrid merely smiled and stoked the fire as a hummed a little tune to himself. 

~ID~

“You’re joking!” Ginny exclaimed, “Absolutely shitting me!”

It was several hours later that Harry found himself hiding inside of his trunk, talking to Ginny through their mirrors. He had just finished telling her all about the events of that evening. 

“Where did you learn a word like that?” Harry asked, shocked.

Ginny smiled wickedly, “Fred and George have taught me more than picking locks.”

“You can pick locks?” Harry asked, amused.

“Among other, notable talents. But enough about that, what in the world is Hagrid thinking?”

“I honestly have no idea, Gin. Hermione had a good point—he lives in a wooden house! Honestly, I ought to take bets on whether the thing burns to the ground and how many people are in it.”

“Harry! Don’t say that! Someone could get seriously injured!”

“Yeah, like me! You know he’ll expect us to help him with this, right?”

Ginny sighed, “And you’re going to, aren’t you?” 

“I mean—if we don’t, he could get caught or hurt.”

“But you could get caught or hurt.”

“Nah—I won’t get in trouble if we’re caught. I can plead ignorance of the law,” Harry said with a crooked smile, “You know it’s true, Gin.”

Ginny’s gaze softened as she looked at Harry’s image in the mirror, “You know that won’t work.”

Harry shrugged, “Worth a try. Anyway, Ron and I have been betting on when the thing will hatch. Don’t tell Hermione, but Draco joined in on it—he took next Thursday.”

“But all of this aside—Snape, Harry!”

His eyes darkened, “Yeah. I had no idea how deep into Voldemort’s inner circle he was.”

“And Draco just—told you all of this? Like—he’s always known this information?”

“Apparently he thought it was common knowledge. He was shocked when we talked to him after leaving Hagrid’s and told him we had no idea about any of that. He told us a bit more information, too. Apparently Snape had also joined this group, the Order of the Phoenix, which was run by Dumbledore. Our families were in it, Ginny. He has everyone fooled. Now I know he’s trying to steal the Stone and I think I know why. I think he wants to use it to bring Voldemort back to life.”

Ginny shuttered, “Really? I just—I don’t get it, Harry. You’ve been at school since September and you’ve been in classes with Snape. If he’s truly helping you-know-who, why hasn’t he tried to—you know—off you or something?”

“I’ve been thinking about that. I really think it’s because Voldemort wants to do it himself or something. That or Snape wants to try to stay on Dumbledore’s good side until he can get to the Stone.”

“How long do you think Quirrell can hold out?”

“Who knows. I’m surprised he’s lasted this long if I’m honest,” Harry said as he rolled over on the bed and faced the ceiling, “Quirrell is a bit of a wimp when it comes to anything the least bit threatening.”

“I’ve been thinking about that—I wonder if there isn’t any real trick to getting passed Quirrell’s enchantment and it’s more of a skill of sorts. You know, like chess or something.”

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, his brows furrowed, "I'm not following you."

"I'm saying that maybe Quirrell's enchantment doesn't have just one answer, that it's a skills test, and that's why he hasn't told Snape yet. Because there's nothing to tell."

Harry frowned, "That, or maybe Snape has been trying to get through his enchantment and can't because it's a skill he doesn't have. Either way, it's only a matter of time.

"But still, him having been a Death Eater only proves he's up to no good!"

"I can still hardly believe it. But, I suppose Draco's dad would know more than us--wasn't he a Death Eater, too?"

Harry nodded, "Yeah. Course Mr. Malfoy claims to have been Imperiused the entire time." Harry rolled his eyes.

"Ah, yes," Ginny said in a high, haughty voice, "We mustn't forget that Mr. Malfoy can do no wrong!"

Harry let out a burst of roarkus laughter.

Ginny smiled before continuing, "Still--do you think Snape will reach the Stone?"

"Honestly, Gin? I don't think it's an 'if' anymore--I think it's a 'when' and I think when is soon."

Ginny paled, "How soon? Do--do you think he already knows where to find you-know-who?"

"Dunno," Harry admitted with a shrug, "And I'm not sure who else to warn about this. I thought about talking to Nana, but I don't know if she'll believe me or not. And Dumbledore? He trusts Snape--that's a lost cause."

"What about your dad?"

Harry snorted, "Please! He'd sooner yank me out of school on the chance I'm right. And by the time that's settled Voldemort will probably have the Stone. I need to learn to fight him--I can't risk having to leave Hogwarts."

"Harry," Ginny started nervously, "I just think--"

Harry shook his head, "It's not worth the risk, Gin."

"Sirius, then," Ginny half-pleaded, "Or Remus?"

"They'll tell my dad and yank me out of Hogwarts."

"Look, Bill's coming home for the holiday. What if I talk to him about all of this?"

Harry thought that proposal over for a moment. Surely Bill, a curse breaker who helped locate the cursed vaults at Hogwarts, would be able to help with the challenges that protect the Stone? While Harry could see the benefits of enlisting Bill's help, Harry also knew that, if Bill suspected anything out of place, it was likely he would mention something to Mr. Or Mrs. Weasley who would, in turn, tell James.

"Let me ask the others," Harry finally concluded, "I'm not sure telling anyone just yet is a good idea. Snape probably doesn’t know everything in his way, yet, and it probably doesn’t matter."

"Just don't do anything rash," she said, "Like getting yourself killed. Or expelled. You know, whichever would be first."

“Yeah, yeah,” Harry said as he rolled his eyes, “You’re one to talk. Cause any mayhem lately?”

Ginny’s eyes glinted wickedly, “Absolutely not—I’m an angel, don’t you know that, Harry?”

“And I’m Nicholas Flamel,” Harry said sarcastically, “What have you done?”

“I definitely didn’t send Fred and George a toilet seat,” she remarked, her eyes glittering.

Harry snorted, “A toilet seat? You—you,” Harry quickly thought for a word, “imp.”

“Harry! I’m quite offended!” she let out a peal of laughter. A few moments later, Harry could hear Mrs. Weasley yelling up the stairs to her, inquiring as to what the noise was for.

“Oh, no. I’m sorry, Harry. I should go. Mum doesn’t know about the mirror. Call me soon, ok?”

“Sure, Gin. Have fun!” 

Ginny rolled her eyes and quickly closed the compact mirror and grabbed the book sitting on her bedside table. She had just managed to open it and read a few lines before Mrs. Weasley knocked on her door and entered. Mrs. Weasley frowned.

“Ginny, dear, I thought I heard voices up here. What are you doing?”

“Just reading, mum. Sorry, the last passage was quite funny. I didn’t realize how loud I was being.”

“Right,” Mrs. Weasley replied slowly, “Well—it’s time to wash up in any case. Dinner is almost ready. Come down and help me set the table, will you?”

“Sure, mum. I’ll be down in a minute.”

Mrs. Weasley nodded and left Ginny alone in her room, the door open ajar. Ginny waited until she heard her mum in the kitchen before she flung herself back on her bed and sighed. She couldn’t wait to go to Hogwarts.

~ID~

Sirius found himself sitting in the living room with a book laid out before him on the arm of the couch. His half-drunk beer was sitting beside him now warm and flat. He had found that ever since his trip to St. Mungos, he didn’t quite care for the taste of alcohol as much as he had. Though he still enjoyed a beer now and then, and he found social drinking to be somewhat entertaining, he didn’t seek out a drink nearly as much as he used to. 

He found himself easily distracted while he tried to work. Really, he didn’t find the book the office had assigned him to read entertaining at all. He was currently reviewing the techniques and uses for some basic charms and jinxes that he hadn’t had to study since his first year at Hogwarts. He was briefly considering having Harry brush him up on the topic so he could avoid having to read the dull book when James wondered into the room. 

James seemed slightly surprised to see Sirius somewhat engrossed in any kind of book. Surely he hadn’t seen Sirius even touch a book, outside of their horcrux research, since the time at Hogwarts. And even then, if memory served him well, he was sure that Sirius didn’t touch books then, either, instead relying on Remus’ account of what they contained rather than read them for himself. 

“Well, I didn’t know you could read.”

Sirius smiled, “Ha-ha. You’re so funny. I’ll have you know that I can read in three languages.”

“Sarcasm, pig-Latin,” James ticked them off on his thumb, index, and middle finger, “and baboon?”

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh, “Sure, that sounds accurate. Still more languages than you know.”

“Careful, Sirius, all this book reading will make you too serious and people will have to take you,” He paused, “seriously.”

“Come off it, Prongs. I’m trying to work.”

“Look at you,” James said as he flung himself on the couch and laid an arm around Sirius lazily, “being an adult and putting in hours at an actual job.”

“Yeah. Never thought you’d see the day, eh?”

“Lily and I had our bets. If she were still here, I’d owe her ten galleons. She said you’d settle down one day and I bet that you’d be a wild, maniac your entire life. She always did know people well.”

“Lils was one of the few people who truly understood any of us,” Sirius agreed, sadness in his eyes, “I miss her every day, James. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there to save her.”

James shook his head, “Don’t be. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to save her. But, at the end of the day, no one could have saved her. Voldemort had decided she wasn’t worth keeping alive and once he makes that decision hardly anyone ever survives. And she saved our Harry. I couldn’t have asked for more.”

“If I had just been earlier—even a few minutes, Prongs. She could still be—”

“Stop. Didn’t you and your mind-healer discuss letting go of your guilt? It’s not your fault. Anyway, I came in to see what you were up to. I feel like we don’t see each other nearly as much as we used to.”

“That’s true. I’ve been working and you’ve been at your appointments for your hand.”

“Now that Voldemort is gone, we don’t have anything to worry about. Why don’t we go out? Find something to do? I’m sure two old men can find a new hobby or activity.”

“Who are you calling old?”

“Certainly not you!” James laughed, “I heard that Cork is having a muggle car show today. It’s a sort of event where muggles go to see expensive cars and other types of vehicles. I heard they’re displaying the new Lamborghini and a few new motorcycles. Any way I could convince you to come with me? I bet we could pay to test drive some of the models.”

“James!” Sirius said, shock displayed on his face, “That’s called prostitution and I believe it’s quite illegal! But, if you insist.”

“The cars, Padfoot! The cars!”

“Oh, well, that doesn’t sound nearly as fun as what I had imagined.”

James rolled his eyes, “They’ll have a beerfest, too. What do you say? Spend the afternoon with your old mate?”

“Like a date?” Sirius batted his eyelashes, “I thought you’d never ask!”

James stared for a moment before making a bouquet of flowers appear in his hand and held them out to Sirius, “Anything for my one and only love.”

Sirius swooned and took the flowers, making a show of smelling them and holding them close. 

The two men quickly got ready and then apparated to Cork where they made their way to the car show. Though both men were raised in a pureblood society, each had a deep love and fascination with muggle cars. Sirius, of course, had actually purchased himself a motorcycle once in the past and had enchanted it to fly. The bike, though, had been lost after Hagrid had used it to take Harry to the Dursleys after the fall of Voldemort. Sirius had failed to track it back down again after that and had yet to replace the vehicle. 

Due to his love of motorcycles, that was, of course, their first stop. James watched, amused, as Sirius eyed the bikes with a reverence James did not quite understand. James wondered as they continuously found themselves looking at the Ducati’s over and over whether his friend has somehow fallen in love with an inanimate object. And it was after their fourth time back to that section that James spoke up. 

“Gods, Sirius, just buy the damn thing. I’m tired of coming back to look at it and surely you have more than enough gold to pay for it.”

Sirius frowned, “I mean, I do. But, James, another motorcycle? After what happened to my last one?”

“Just don’t lose this one and go and buy it already. You can ride it home.”

“That’ll take me days!” Sirius complained.

“So you can sleep in a motel room and show it off to all the women you see! Think about how easily you’d be able to pick women up on that thing. And it comes in both red and black.”

“I’m partial to the white and black one,” Sirius said with a smile, “It looks sharp and the chrome features stand out much better on that model.”

“So why are we still arguing about it? Just buy the damn thing. It’ll make you happy. Treat yourself.”

Sirius thought for a moment before nodding, “I should treat myself. And why not? I deserve it.”

James snorted as Sirius turned and called for a salesman. They discussed the Ducati Sirius was interested in and it wasn’t long before papers were drawn up. Sirius had been able to pay for it in full. He had James had both decided early on in their adulthood to keep both muggle and wizarding accounts. Well, ever since Sirius was picked up by the muggle policemen and neither James nor Remus had kept muggle money. It had been a damn sight to try to get their galleons converted to pounds in the middle of the night on New Year’s Eve. It had taken them all night to come up with the 500 pounds needed for Sirius’ bail money. And by the time they returned to the police station, Sirius had charmed the officers so well that they had decided to release him with a simple warning to no longer be caught pissing in bushes. Since then, both men kept their muggle accounts full just in case something of a similar nature occurred again. They had to admit that those accounts had come in handy over the last decade. 

After an hour of wandering around, Sirius finally caught up with James in the mobile camper section of the show, a smile plastered on his face.

“I managed to talk them down a few hundred pounds.”

“Yeah? Good on you, mate. And you’re driving it home?”

“Nah, I’m having it customized. They’ll deliver it in a few weeks. Have you found anything that catches your eye?”

“Not yet,” James admitted, “But I was just about to make my way over to the sports car section. I’m sure something there will strike me.”

At some point during the day Sirius managed to convince James to purchase a Corvette in a lovely shade of cream. James had opted to get the more expensive, tan leather seats for the car as well as all of the upgrade features. Though he had never learnt to drive a car, James was excited at the prospect of learning and having a new mode of transportation available to him. 

Come the end of the show, the two men found themselves at the beerfest looking at the options before them. As they left the line with their commemorative sampling cup, Sirius frowned.

“How do they expect us to get drunk with this little cup? My finger doesn’t even fit into the handle. What, is this made for house elves?”

James laughed, “It’s small so you sample the different brews. You can have unlimited samples from each stand and there’s about twenty of them.”

Sirius turned and looked at the endless options before him and smiled, “Oh good lord, I’m going to have fun with this. Oh! Look! They’ve got a stout with cherry in it. Can you believe that?”

James smiled as he watched Sirius run off toward the closest stand. “James! Look at this! A blood orange IPA! I don’t know what the fuck a blood orange is, but I fucking want some!”

James quickly ran off to meet Sirius and had his cup filled. They decided that each would get one of the beers so they could both sample them. It was unanimously decided that the Stout was much better than the IPA but that the IPA was significantly better than any other they’d ever had. 

As they made their way around the room, James and Sirius decided to make a list of their favorite beers. They intended to be able to buy some for home. In the end, James and Sirius decided that the best beer they had was a hefeweizen from a small, unknown brewery in Scotland. James managed to talk to the owner of the brewery, who happened to be working the event, and discussed a potential investment in their product. Once he established that he, in fact, invests in several wineries and breweries around the world, the owner scheduled a meeting to discuss the endeavor further. 

By the time they left the beerfest, both men were drunk enough to be singing drinking tunes and, for some unfathomable reason, sea shanties. Somehow they managed to stumble home; James suspected one of the elves came to pick them up so they didn’t accidentally splinch themselves.

~ID~

Harry and company spent a good deal of time wondering what was going to happen once Hagrid’s dragon egg hatched. They worried at how much help they would have to give him and what would happen to Hagrid if he got caught. Of course, they didn’t have to wait long to find out. It was about a week later while all four of them were just sitting down for breakfast when a school owl landed in Draco’s bowl of oatmeal, sending flecks of the milky white gunk all over the table. Draco frowned as he wiped his breakfast off of his robes as Ron tugged the parchment from the owl’s leg. He quickly unfurled it and read the two words written in scratchy handwriting, It’s hatching.

Ron and Harry were all for skipping Herbology to go straight down to the hut. They argued that it isn’t every day that one gets to see a dragon hatching. But Draco and Hermione quickly nixed that idea, stating simply that they would get in trouble if they skived. Draco quickly hushed them, though, as Zabini and Nott passed by their table. Nott frowned at them, curiously, eyeing Draco, while Blaise smiled maliciously before continuing on. 

In the end, Hermione and Draco had been right to not skip their lesson. They had managed to make it just in time to watch the baby dragon split the egg open and fall out onto the table. They watched as it sneezed and a few sparks flew out of its nose.

“Isn’t he beautiful?” Hagrid murmured as he reached out a hand to stroke its small head. Apparently the little dragon did not enjoy this display of affection because it attempted to bite Hagrid, baring its fangs at him. “Bless him, look, he knows his mummy!” 

“Hagrid,” Hermione started nervously as she eyed the wrinkled, black dragon, “exactly how fast do Norwegian Ridgebacks grow?”

Hagrid was about to answer when the color suddenly drained from his face and he leapt to his feet and ran to the window, “Someone was lookin’ through the gap in the curtains—it’s a kid—he’s runnin’ back up ter the school.”

Harry bolted to the door and opened it in time to see Blaise Zabini running back into the castle at top speed. There was no mistaking him and Harry was sure that he had seen the dragon through the gap in the curtains. He turned to see Draco looking out of the door, his face white as the gravity of the situation set into him. 

“This won’t be good,” he muttered.

“You think he’ll tell Dumbledore?”

Draco shook his head, “He’s going to keep it to himself until he sees the perfect opportunity to screw all of us over. It won’t be enough to simply get Hagrid in trouble, he’ll want to take all of us down.”

“Why?” Hermione asked as she covered her mouth, “We’ve never done anything to upset him or cross him—I don’t understand why he has it out for us?”

“Honestly? I think it’s my fault. We used to be friends during our childhood, as you know, but then I wasn’t sorted into Slytherin and went against my family’s ways. It’s hard on him, I’m sure.”

“That’s such a stupid reason,” Ron said, “You don’t have to stop being friends just because you’re in different houses. I mean, we’re still friends with you. Lord only knows why, though.”

Draco rolled his eyes, “It’s different for families who still follow the old pureblood ways. Yours doesn’t, Ron, so you wouldn’t understand what the problem is. To us, this is the ultimate betrayal.”

Something about the smile lurking on Zabini’s face during the next week made Harry, Draco, Ron, and Hermione very nervous. As they feared, they ended up spending most of their free time in Hagrid’s hut, trying to reason with him and help keep Norbert from burning the house down or injuring Hagrid too much. 

They tried convincing Hagrid to release Norbert, to just set him free to fend on his own, but Hagrid wouldn’t hear of it. According to Hagrid, the dragon wouldn’t survive if they released him—he needed to be older, Hagrid would argue. 

By the time Norbert had grown three times in length, a mere week after his hatching, the group managed to convince Hagrid that the dragon would soon be too large to contain within the walls of his hut and that the forest was not a safe or suitable place for him to stay. 

“I know I can’t keep him,” Hagrid said to them one evening, “but I can’t jus’ dump him, I can’t.”

Harry had been racking his brain trying to figure out a safe and suitable option for all involved. Then, he had a sudden, glowing idea that sat shining before him.

“Charlie!” Harry shouted to the group.

“You’re losing it,” Ron said, “I’m Ron, remember?”

“Is the heat getting to you?” Draco asked, “Even I can tell the difference between the Weasleys.”

“No—Charlie—Ron’s brother who lives in Romania and works with dragons. What if we sent Norbert to Charlie? Then he can take care of him and then release him into the wild!”

“Harry! That’s a brilliant idea!” Hermione commented, “I never would have thought of it. What do you think, Hagrid?”

It took some persuading and more flattery, but, eventually, Hagrid relented and agreed to let them write to Charlie and ask for his assistance. 

It took Charlie a week to reply to them. It was late in the evening, long after everyone else in Gryffindor tower had gone to bed while they waited for Ron to get back from Hagrid’s hut. They hadn’t been waiting long, the clock had just struck midnight when Ron suddenly appeared, the invisibility cloak in his uninjured hand. 

“It bit me!” he exclaimed, “I’m not going to be able to hold a quill for a week! I tell you, that dragon’s the most horrible animal I’ve ever met. And you know what Hagrid did when it bit me? He told me off—for frightening it! Can you believe that? And when I left, he was singing it a lullaby.”

Hermione quickly examined Ron’s hand and was prattling away about potential healing spells when they heard a sharp tap on the window. They looked up quickly, fear in their eyes before they realized it was only Hedwig.

“She’ll have Charlie’s letter!” Harry said as he let her into the room. He quickly took the letter and pulled his mirror out, calling Draco as he opened the note. Then he read it aloud for everyone.

Dear Ron,

How are you? Thanks for the letter—I’d be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won’t be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine who are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is, they mustn’t be seen carrying an illegal dragon.

Could you get the Ridgeback up to the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him away while it’s still dark.

Send me an answer as soon as possible. 

Love,

Your Favorite Brother

They looked at one another quickly as they took in the request.

“It shouldn’t be too hard,” Harry said slowly, “We have the cloak and can use that to keep ourselves invisible. It’s definitely big enough for two of us and Norbert. Maybe three if we’re lucky.”

“You go,” Ron said, his face turning green, “I’m not going to be any help with this hand.” 

Ron held his hand up to the mirror and explained to Draco what had happened to him that evening. 

“Be careful,” Draco advised, “Some dragons can be venomous. And their bites can cause nasty infections. You should go to the hospital wing in the morning. Say you were too close to the forest and something bit you but you couldn’t see what it was. She may think it was a Thestral. Sometimes they get curious.”

“What’s a Thestral?” Ron asked, confused.

“Invisible, winged horses. Hogwarts has a domesticated batch,” Hermione answered quickly and then added, “It’s all in Hogwarts: A History,”

Draco nodded, “She’ll suspect you’re lying but I don’t think she’ll call you out on it. Madam Pomfrey is very, don’t ask, don’t tell.”

By the next morning the group discovered that Draco had, in fact, been correct in his warning to Ron as Ron’s hand had swollen to twice its usual size. By that afternoon it had turned green and began leaking some sort of foul liquid. 

Ron decided to feed Pomfrey the story Draco gave him and it seemed to work well. She seemed suspicious but muttered something under her breath about Thestrals and their dangers. 

When the group came to visit him that evening, Ron was in a state of panic.

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked as he saw the distress on Ron’s face.

“It’s more than just my hand—though I think that may fall off it hurts so badly. Don’t ever get bitten by a—well, anyway. Zabini was in here not long ago. He told Pomfrey that he wanted to borrow one of my books so he could have a good laugh or to confirm his theories or something. Anyway, he took my book and I realized, Charlie’s letter was in that book. He knows about the meeting!”

Before Harry, Hermione, or Draco could respond to Ron, Madam Pomfrey came over and shoed them away, scalding them for causing her patient distress. As they walked back down the stairs, the three of them discussed the implications Zabini now presented. 

“It’s too late to change the plan now,” Harry said, “We haven’t got time to send Charlie another owl, and this could be our only chance. Besides, Zabini doesn’t know about my cloak.”

“I don’t know if it’s worth the risk,” Draco said, “And in any case, it’s not worth the time to try to get up to Ravenclaw tower and get me. Maybe you two should go at it alone. That will be less people to try to cover under the cloak.”

“I agree,” Hermione said, her face white, “We can’t all fit and it makes sense to have the two of us go since we’re in the same house. Less time and less risk of being caught.”

They quickly found themselves at Hagrid’s hut and knocked. Hagrid quickly opened a window to talk to them.

“I won’t let you in,” he puffed, “Norbert’s at a tricky stage—nothin’ I can’t handle.”

They told him about the letter and about Zabini and their concerns. And, as they left, they felt that Saturday couldn’t come fast enough. But come it eventually did. 

Hagrid said a tearful goodbye to Norbert as Hermione and Harry helped him prepare for the dragon’s departure on Saturday evening. They loaded him carefully and securely into a crate for transportation before setting out on the seemingly impossible and long journey to the Astronomy Tower. 

How they had managed to get the crate all the way into the castle had seemed like a miraculous feat. But when they stepped into the corridor that would lead them to the tower, they felt they had accomplished the impossible. That is, until they saw McGonagall in her dressing gown and bathrobe, a lamp in her hand, as she drug Zabini behind her by the ear. 

“Detention!” she said harshly, “And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you—”

“You don’t understand, Professor! Potter’s coming—he’s got an illegal dragon!”

“What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies! Come along—we shall see Professor Snape about you, Zabini.” 

Once McGonagall was gone and they stepped into the tower, they knew they had finished an impossible task. Hermione actually broke out into a small sort of jig in her excitement. 

They waited and watched the window until a group of four people came swooping down out of the darkness. And, as they whipped the cloak off, Harry realized that she recognized one of the party.

“Tonks!” Harry exclaimed, “What are you doing here?”

“Watcher, Harry! Sorry I didn’t tell you I’d be here. Charlie thought it was best that you were kept as much in the dark as possible to make sure this went smoothly and quietly.”

“I knew you were friends with Charlie but I didn’t realize you were going to visit him.”

“Sure am! I was given three days off from work and I decided to travel since your Uncle is being absolutely impossible right now,” Tonks said as she rolled her eyes.

Harry watched as they loaded Norbert up in a safety harness between them, “You’ll be safe, won’t you? Uncle Moony will bite my head off if you get caught or hurt.”

“Oh nonsense,” Tonks said, blushing, “Remus couldn’t care less about me or my wellbeing.”

“He sure could. He cares about you a lot. Didn’t you know that?”

“He does?”

“Well I’ve certainly never seen him act the way he does with you towards anyone else. Even his last girlfriend.”

“You don’t say,” Tonks said quietly as she looked down at the dragon, “Anyway, we’d best be off. We need to make sure we get to Romania before the sun comes up.”

They all exchanged pleasant goodbyes and Harry and Hermione watched as Norbert was flown slowly away. They watched until they couldn’t see the group anymore and smiled. 

They quickly slipped back down the staircase and began making their way towards the staircase that would take them back to Gryffindor tower when a face suddenly loomed out of the darkness.

“Well, well, well,” Filch whispered, “we are in trouble, aren’t we?”

That’s when Harry and Hermione realized their biggest mistake. They had left the cloak at the top of the tower, rendering them visible. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny and for sticking with my story for so long. I love you all. Please remember to like, follow, and review!


	51. Chapter Fifty-One: Unicorn Blood

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a Merry Christmas/New Year and, for my British friends, a happy boxing day! Still not sure what that is by the way. If anyone wants to review and tell me, I would be so happy to find out! We’ve been busy here at my house as my daughter’s birthday was yesterday. We were all happy to see the end of 2020 here and we’re looking forward to a less gloomy year. Maybe? I don’t know. 

Reviews: ProfessorBowties: You know, I’m really not a car person either. But I always imagined Sirius being a huge motorcycle person (obviously) and James being a classic/sports car enthusiast and I really wanted to introduce that. Plus, cars will help in travel for future chapters and events. I debated having them remember the cloak, but then we wouldn’t have had the forest scene. Nesciamema: thank you! DekuGwap: thank you! I’m glad you like it. I hope you continue reading and enjoy it. Merry Christmas to you, too!

Beer of the week: Sam Adams Cold Snap. I know, I know. It’s not a craft brew. But! I have a deep love for this beer. It’s crisp and sharp and full of Christmas flavors perfect for drinking in front of the fireplace. Plus, my dad and I really bond over this beer. Since he only drinks Yuengling, I always get excited when he branches out. 

Posting schedule: once per week.

Thank you everyone for reading. Please, please, please! Review my chapters. Your reviews remind me why I keep writing and renew my love for Ignoring Destiny. You guys are the biggest reason I continue to write and, lately, I’ve been missing so many of my regular reviewers. Your absences never go unnoticed (in a good way—an I miss you guys, are you ok, kind of way) and I love and appreciate every review I receive on any platform. 

Please expect that one shot from me before the end of January. I’ll give you a little bit of a teaser here! It focuses on Fred and George during their Hogwarts years! I found the prompt on Tumblr and I couldn’t not write it. Please be sure to follow me as an author to receive the notification of the posting!

Thank you everyone! Be safe and be happy!

Chapter Fifty-One: Unicorn Blood

Tonks and company found themselves flying for hours across Europe with Norbert fighting and shaking the box the entire trip. Who would have guessed that dragons weren’t fans of the cold? 

The air in the night sky was certainly crisp, if not down right freezing. Tonks found herself constantly readjusting on the broom in a desperate attempt to warm each butt cheek individually as the warming spells they had all placed upon themselves had long since worn off. 

Tonks had decided that the icicles hanging from her nostrils were wroth the aggravation, though, the moment she landed at the dragon reserve in Romania and saw the face of her best friend. 

Charlie Weasley was standing out on the lawn in front of a small townhouse with a sloppy grin plastered on his face as he waived to the incoming group. He started shouting something at them, his grin fading slightly as his waiving became more feverish. Tonks frowned as she watched, wondering what was wrong. Then, suddenly, a roar of fire missed the group by a few meters, the bluish flames causing them to start sweating from the intense heat. 

“Woah!” one of the other members shouted as the group veered to the left, “Careful guys! I think Charlie is warning us about a rogue dragon!”

Tonks’ eyes widened as she caught sight of the black monstrosity behind them. She spurred her broom to fly faster, to no avail, when, suddenly, the dragon was yanked back by a chain around its ankle. Tonks watched as a handsome man she’s never met ran over to the dragon and helped to restrain it. He brushed his curly locks from his face before looking up at the sky and waiving to the newcomers. Tonks smiled as she flew and then her broom lurched as it struck the front of Charlie’s house, bucking her from her seat and throwing her to the ground. She lay on the ground for a moment, as if she were contemplating who’s fault it was that she had just landed on her ass in the dirt so early in the morning. 

She could hear the roarkus laughter of the group standing around her but that didn’t matter. Her current embarrassment was all that mattered to her as she saw Charlie’s face loom over hers, a hand outstretched towards her with his loping grin on his face. 

“Well, I suppose it wouldn’t be a visit from you without one minor accident, now would it?”

Tonks grinned, “Wotcher. I suppose not, eh?”

“How have you been Nymphy?” Charlie asked as he effortlessly pulled Tonks to her feet.

She rolled her eyes, “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Nymphy? I swear, it’s more embarrassing than Nymphadora,” she said with a scowl. 

“Oh, because Nymphy is so much better than Smolder?” 

“Hey, at least yours is extremely masculine,” Tonks said proudly, “And it relates to dragons. What more could you want, Smoldy?” 

Charlie rolled his eyes, “How was the trip?”

“Nearly froze my buttocks off, but we made it. And brought the cargo,” she said, her eyes twinkling with excitement.

Charlie’s eyes lit up at the mention of the dragon, “You got it, then? Excellent!” 

He quickly ran over to the crate the was laying abandoned on the ground. Even from a slight distance Tonks could see the box dancing about on the ground as the dragon moved angrily within its prison. 

“It seems to have survived the fall,” Charlie commented, “It didn’t give you any issues during travel?”

One of the men in the group shook his head, “No. I think the coldness in the air weakened it. It didn’t move much during the flight and didn’t send off any fire which is good. It would have lit that crate alight and we could have lost it on our way.”

Tonks shook her head, “Nah, can’t have. I reinforced the box with fire-repelling and unbreakable charms. That thing wasn’t going to get out of there no matter how much of a fight it put up.”

Charlie laughed, “Well, that explains how it’s still in a wooden box, that’s for sure! Good thinking Nymphy.”

Charlie quickly called over a few other reserve workers and had them assist in removing Norbert from his confines and relocating him to an active next site where he could be mothered by another dragon with hatchlings. Tonks watched in what seemed to be a mix of amazement and incredulity as Charlie cuddled the little dragon as if it were a small baby in his arms.

“Smold, it’s not baby.”

“I mean, technically it is. It’s a baby dragon, yes it is!” 

Tonks paled, “Please tell me you haven’t been putting them in—”

“Do you want to see the new outfits I got for them?” Charlie asked excitedly, interrupting Tonks.

“Onesies?” Tonks asked cautiously.

“Would it be anything else?”

“With you? I suppose not. Come on, let’s go. You won’t shut up about it until you show them to me.”

“Course not!” Charlie said as he handed Norbert off to a comrade and threw his arm around Tonks’ shoulders, “So, what have you been up to, Nymphy? Give me all the explicit details. How is Mr. Remus Sexy-as-hell Lupin these days?”

Tonks’ mouth gaped, “Excuse you! First off, only I’m allowed to call him sexy as hell. Secondly, how did you know! I haven’t told you!”

“Please. You’ve always had a crush on him and in your last few letters you’ve mentioned working with him on a project and then having Christmas with the Black-Lupin-Potter’s. I’m a dragon tamer, not stupid. I can put 2 and 2 together, Nymph. How long did it take before you convinced him to shag you?”

Tonks blushed and punched Charlie lightly on the arm, “From the start? Until about 4 months ago.”

“You’re joking! He held out for that long?”

Tonks nodded, “Man’s got the thickest skull and sense of martyrism I’ve ever seen.”

“Because of the wolfy problem?”

“That and the age. Let’s be honest, the age gap is rather large but I’m not concerned by it. He’s a good, kind man, Smolder.”

“I know,” Charlie smiled, “So, tell me how you convinced him.”

Tonks and Charlie spent the next few hours drinking and going over Tonks and Remus’ relationship with a fine-toothed comb, analyzing every sentence and word said between them. 

“I don’t know,” Charlie said an hour into their deep analyzation, taking a long swig of his beer, “He keeps coming back to you, despite what you’ve heard about him with relationships, and you’ve had continuous, non-sexual interactions. I don’t think he’s not into you—I think he’s scared.”

Tonks frowned, “Scared of what? Public outcry? What does the public have to do with our relationship—not relationship?”

“A lot, actually. He’s a werewolf and he’s registered with the Ministry. Even though that list is private and inaccessible to those without proper authorization, that doesn’t change the fact that someone could find out and, when that happens, he’d be a social pariah. I know that he had difficulty finding a post before Dumbledore gave him one because of his condition, and I’m sure he’s scared that he’ll accidentally injure someone or, god forbid, accidentally infect another human. Those are legitimate fears and concerns. Have you even considered any of them?”

Tonks looked away sheepishly, “Well—I—no, no I guess I hadn’t. I just thought, you know, it only happens once a month so it’s not that big of deal. He’s normal the rest of the time…” Tonks trailed off as she caught sight of the look of contempt on Charlie’s face.

“You really have no idea how insanely ignorant you sound—did you even pay attention in DADA when we had our werewolf lesson? Sure, they’re normal humans most of the time, and their disease isn’t any reason to avoid them or believe they’re evil because of it and, often, werewolves are kind individuals just like normal humans. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t dangerous.”

“Hey! I know they’re dangerous. We had to learn about them at bootcamp.”

“Yes, you learn the mechanics of it. But you’ve never interacted with other wolves or learned about their culture and lifestyle. You know what books have taught you, not what the individual can teach you.”

“How do you know so much about their fears?”

“One of my coworkers here on the reservation is a werewolf,” Charlie replied mater-of-factly as he drank more of his beer, “Great bloke. One of the best on the reserve and I’d trust him with my life 28 out of 30 days of the month. We don’t judge people here based on their lifestyle or diseases, but we understand that there are risks associated with the disease and take appropriate measures and protections.”

“One of—really? Who?”

Charlie shook his head, “Can’t say. That would be an invasion of his privacy, wouldn’t it? Anyway, if you want to get anywhere with Lupin, you need to start thinking about things from his point of view. How fearful he may be of your safety, your health. Honestly, the fact that he’s kept you around so long is promising in my, humble opinion.”

“Humble, eh? Bullocks! I call bullocks!” Tonks shouted as she lunged at Charlie and tackled him, forcing him to fall backwards off the low couch and onto the floor, “Ha! You deserved that!” Tonks teased. 

“Christ, Nymphy, I could have cracked my skull open.”

“You’ve survived how many near-death experiences at the hands of how many dragons but you’re worried about a cracked skull? Ok, Smolder, ok.”

“Come on,” Charlie motioned as he stood up, “I think I have some snacks in the kitchen. Let’s go find some and talk more about how grown-up life is treating us.”

Tonks smiled and followed Charlie out fo the room. Yeah, she thought, she’d definitely missed her best friend.

~ID~

Harry, Hermione, and Draco sat quietly at Gryffindor table the morning after dropping Norbert off forever. Ron was still in the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey had refused to release him until the color in his hand had turned back to normal. Harry was silently wondering how long it would take his Nana to tell his dad what happened last night. His stomach twisted in knots as he thought back to the night before and the look of absolute disappointment on McGonagall’s face as she handed out their punishments. 

McGonagall looked at the four students standing before her desk as the moonlight spilled into the room. None of them had realized exactly how thin McGonagall’s lips could get when she was angry. The thinness had them all shifting their weight uncomfortably as they waited for the explosion. 

“Four students. Four students out of bed in one night. Never, in all my time at Hogwarts has this ever happened,” she glanced down at Harry and thought for a moment, “No. no I suppose it has. But that does not disregard the severity of your situation. And the worst of this is that your lies caused Mr. Longbottom to come in search of you. That doesn’t make him right or absolve him of punishment, however.”

“Professor,” Zabini said snidely, “Professor I was just trying to warn you—”

McGonagall held her hand up to Zabini, “Mr. Zabini, I do not care to hear whatever it is you have to say. There is never a good reason to be out of bed at this hour let alone wandering the castle. 50 points from Slytherin for this indiscretion.”

Harry shot Zabini a gloating look before moving his eyes back to McGonagall. He jumped when he realized she was staring directly at him, “As for you three. 50 points from Gryffindor. Each.”

Harry’s mouth fell open, “Each?”

“Each. And you three will serve a detention this weekend. I shall inform you of when and where at a later time. Until then, off to bed,” McGonagall said before sitting down at her desk. 

Harry turned to leave the room as McGonagall spoke up again, “Mr. Potter, a word, please.”

Harry gulped and turned to look at his nana and gave her a lopsided grin, “What’s up, Nana?”

McGonagall let out an involuntary smile before setting her lips back to a thin line again, “Mr. Potter—Harry. I wanted to tell you without anyone else around just how disappointed I am in you. I had always thought you were more like Lily. Surely you inherited her temperament and her kind disposition. I had never expected that I would need to keep an eye on you quite like I did with James and Sirius. And I hope,” she said, her eyes narrowing, “this sort of behavior doesn’t continue.”

“I’m sorry, Nana,” Harry said honestly. 

McGonagall nodded, “I’ll have to inform James. I’m sure Remus will know by morning and Sirius soon thereafter. Now go, and have a restful night.”

Harry nodded and quickly turned on his heel and left the office. 

McGonagall stepped up behind Harry and Hermione suddenly and said, “Your detentions will be held at midnight on Saturday evening. You will meet Filch in the entrance hall and he shall lead you down to Hagrid where you will assist him with an endeavor in the Forbidden Forest.”

“The Forbidden Forest?” Hermione asked, her face paling.

“Yes, Ms. Granger, the Forbidden Forest. Mr. Potter, Professor Lupin has requested to see you after classes today.”

Harry nodded, “Thank you, Professor.”

The little group turned into one another and whispered amongst themselves, “You think he’s going to yell at you?” Ron asked as his face paled.

Harry shook his head, “I’m honestly not sure. I mean, I’ve never heard Uncle Moony yell. So, I don’t think so?”

Just then Harry felt his mirror vibrating in his pocket and he paled, “I have to go. Dad’s calling.”

Harry quickly stood up and made his way out of the great hall, only glancing back momentarily to catch the sight of his friends’ mournful looks.

Just as he slid into an unused classroom his mirror began vibrating again. He quickly pulled it out and prepared for the unknown. 

“Hey dad.”

“Harry. I’m not sure if I should be angry with you or extremely proud. I sincerely hope that whatever prank or outing you had planned was worth it as I completely agree with your detention. Though, I do think the amount of points Minnie assigned you was out of control.”

Suddenly, Sirius’ face overtook the screen, pushing James out of the way, “Don’t listen to him, Harry! We’re so proud of you! Our little Marauder, following in our footsteps and making your way around the castle at midnight!” Sirius made an exaggerated sniffing sound as he put some eye drops into his eyes, “I’m literally crying right now. Crying with pride!” he wiped away some of the tears.

James pushed his way back into the frame and rolled his eyes, “Sirius, I swear you’re more dramatic than a teenage girl. We aren’t supposed to be praising him! He technically broke school rules!”

“As if we didn’t break rules all the time! We’re fucking illegal animagi for Merlin’s sake!”

Harry smiled, “He has a point, dad.”

“You! No comments. It’s bad enough I have to deal with Sirius, I can’t handle your sass, too,” James gave Sirius, who was still off-screen, a nasty look before looking back at Harry, “No more midnight wanderings. Moony is going to give you a little lecture today, too.”

Sirius pushed his way into the frame again, “Don’t worry, Harry, I’m going to lecture him about lecturing you before he meets with you! It won’t be too bad for you.”

“Padfoot! Stop trying to get him out of trouble! This is a serious issue.”

“But I wasn’t involved in his nighttime wanderings at all,” Sirius said innocently.

James looked very seriously into the mirror, a pleading look in his eyes, “Harry, I’m asking you as your beloved father to please, please send help. I’m locked in a house with this prat right now with nothing to do.”

“Why don’t you get a job, then, ya freeloader!” Harry heard Sirius shout from beyond the screen.

Harry burst out laughing, this wasn’t feeling like any sort of punishment to him at all. “If you two are going to keep arguing, can I head to class?”

“No you can’t head to class, you haven’t been properly chastised,” James said.

“So you’re going to punish him for breaking rules by making him break more rules?” Sirius asked in the distance, “Makes sense to me!”

“What?” James spluttered, “No! Of course not! Harry, head to class!” 

“Whatever you say dad. I’ll talk to you two later.”

Harry turned his mirror off just as he heard Sirius and James get back into another spat. He couldn’t help but grin at his dads. 

~ID~

The day went more quickly than Harry had wanted it to. It only felt like minutes before the end of the day had come around and he found himself standing out front f his Uncle’s office door, his palms sweating as he hesitated knocking. 

Harry let out a deep breath as he stood outside of the weathered oak door in front of him and composed himself for a moment. Then he gently knocked on the glossy door, hoping that Remus was too busy or occupied to hear the quiet rapping. 

“Come in, Harry,” Remus called from the other side of the door. 

Harry carefully pushed the door open and crept inside of the office. As he glanced around, the only thing he really noticed was Remus sitting, bent over, at his large desk as he inspected the contents of a book.

“Have a seat, Harry. I’ll be with you in a moment, alright?”

Harry quickly sat down in one of the plushy armchairs across from his Uncle’s desk and folded his hands together, trying his best to look calm and innocent. 

It didn’t work.

As soon as Remus looked up from his book Harry knew he was in trouble, “You know,” he tried to divert, “Dad and Uncle Sirius already chewed me out before classes today. And Nana did last night. I’d say I’ve already had my share of lectures. I mean, really, Nana lecturing me was down right scarry.”

Remus simply folded his arms across his chest and stared Harry down, not saying a word.

“I mean, they’ve already told me it was stupid to be out after hours and my punishment is more than deserved. And, really, I feel like the amount of points Gryffindor lost was more than enough punishment.”

Remus continued to stare at Harry, making him shift uncomfortably in his seat.

“And I’m sure it was a disappointment to you guys. I should have told you I was going to be out so late.” When Remus didn’t say anything Harry continued, “And—and I’m sorry,” Harry said desperately. 

Remus analyzed Harry for a moment, considering and weighing his options before speaking, “Have you learned a lesson, Buck?”

Harry nodded, “Don’t get caught by Filch?”

Remus stared him down again, “I know, I know! No sneaking out at night.”

Remus nodded, “I knew we’d get there in the end. Harry, the main reason I wanted to speak to you, aside from the obvious, is that I think some of this sneaking out has to do with you being bored. And yes, I know about the other times you’ve been out after hours. And I know all about your research into Nicholas Flamel.”

“How did you—”

“Did you know that one of the interesting piece of magic involving the Potter Library is that it records all searches conducted therein? And I found it curious that over the holiday someone had searched for Cerberuses and for Nicholas Flamel and, thereafter, the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“I figured you didn’t. I haven’t mentioned this to Sirius or James—no one is supposed to know the Stone is here at Hogwarts. In fact, no one knows who all has helped protect it.”

“Hagrid told us everyone,” Harry argued, “We know. It’s him, Nana, Snape, Quirrell, Dumbledore, Sprout, and Flitwick.”

“And me,” Remus corrected as he looked calmly at Harry.

“You? Why you?”

Remus looked slightly offended, “Why not? Dumbledore wanted someone he could trust to add to the protections secretly. No one outside of the three of us is aware of my intervention in this project.”

“Not even Snape?”

“Not even Professor Snape,” Remus replied calmly, “Why him specifically?”

Harry thought for a moment before shifting in his seat and responding quietly, “We—Ron, Hermione, Draco and I—think he’s trying to steal the stone. He tried to get passed the cerberus on Halloween night.”

Remus sat back in his seat, “Severus was trying to prevent a potential theft that night.”

“How do you know?”

“Because Dumbledore trusts Severus and Dumbledore told me that.”

“Did you know that Snape is a Death Eater? Draco told us he was a double agent for Voldemort during the war.”

“I did know that. I also know that he changed his alliances before Voldemort’s fall. He assisted in hiding you and your parents from Voldemort and often fed him incorrect and misdirectional information.”

“I don’t believe that. Snape is—he’s horrible. And he’s after the stone. He wants it for Voldemort!”

“Harry, you need to drop this nonsense. Stop trying to research the stone. I want you to promise me, right now, that you will not go after the stone yourself.”

“Why do you think I would go after it?”

“Because I know you, Harry. You’re too much like James—he would have gone after it by now.”

“Why should I promise? I’m the only one who cares about Snape trying to get it.”

“Because, if you promise me, I’ll resume our defense lessons. We can meet once a week and work on your defensive skills. Honestly, we shouldn’t have waited so long to resume them.”

“Why do you think we need to return them?”

Remus looked at Harry very seriously, “Even though Voldemort is gone, and trust me, he is gone for good, his followers remain and they will do anything they can to capture or kill you.”

Harry gulped.

“Promise me, Harry. The protections are too dangerous for you. They’re designed to kill grown wizards. Imagine what they’ll do to a first year.”

Harry thought for a moment before responding, “I promise. When can we start?” 

Remus seemed to visibly relax as he smiled, “How does now sound?”

“Fantastic.”

~ID~

Harry felt exhausted and sore as he walked down from Gryffindor Tower with Hermione at a quart to midnight later that evening. He and Remus had practiced several defensive spells for three hours after he had gone to talk to his Uncle. They had practiced Harry’s shield charm again, this time practicing moving it to protect others instead of just himself. They had also practiced the disarming charm and Stupefy. Harry had quickly mastered both spells and moved to practicing them wandlessly. Though he was unsuccessful Remus had high hopes that Harry would be able to pick the spells up wandlessly quickly. Remus had said to Harry that he hadn’t seen such potential for wandless magic since Dumbledore. Harry thought he was overexaggerating, but appreciated the compliment all the same. 

Harry winced as they stepped off of the last stair and his muscles strained. 

Filch sneered at them and held his lantern higher, “Come with me you nasty little rulebreakers. You’ll be spending your detention in the Forbidden Forest. It’s one of the most proper punishments I’ve seen in years here at Hogwarts. I tried to get McGonagall to let me hang you from your thumbs in the dungeons but she wouldn’t budge. Keep breaking rules and maybe she will.” 

The five of them quickly made their way down the rolling lawns to Hagrid’s Hut. Harry tried several times to catch Neville’s eye as they walked, but he was looking pointedly away from him and Hermione. It was clear that Neville didn’t want to speak with them, perhaps even blamed them for his portion of the punishment. And Harry couldn’t find fault in that assumption. 

The four children walked in silence as Filch continued to mutter about the poor quality of the detentions at Hogwarts over the last quarter of a century. Harry and Hermione exchanged glances as they reached the hut and caught sight of Hagrid. He was standing, massive and towering, before them with a crossbow and quiver slung across his back and Fang by his side. 

“’Bout ruddy time,” Hagrid growled, “C’mon kids. We got work ter do.”

“Better be careful,” Filch chimed in, “Never know what you might find in the forest at night.”

“Get out a ‘ere, yeh ruddy, no good—”

“I’ll be back at dawn for them. For what’s left of them,” Filch added unnecessarily. 

“C’mon kids,” Hagrid said as he turned and began walking into the forest.

The kids half ran to keep up with Hagrid as they walked into the trees next to his hut.

“Hagrid?” Hermione called, “Hagrid, what are we doing out here?”

“We’re searching fer a unicorn. Summat’s injured it. See here,” Hagrid said as he indicated a silvery substance on a leaf, “Tha’s unicorn blood. It mus’ be badly injured an’ we need ter find it.”

“Something’s injuring unicorns and we’ve been sent into the forest to find the injured one?” Blaise asked angrily, “Isn’t that, I don’t know, kind of extremely dangerous for first years to have to handle?”

“Calm down Zabini, yer with me an’ Fang. Yer goin’ ter be fine.”

As the darkness increased Harry pulled out his wand, “Lumos.” The brightness from the tip of his wand illuminated a few feet of the path before him. He frowned and waived his wand, “Lumos Maxima. Wow, that didn’t help much, did it?” he commented as only another foot of pathway illuminated for him. 

Hermione frowned and lit her wand too, “Yeah, it doesn’t provide much light does it? Not in this amount of darkness.”

“You two clearly aren’t doing the spell correctly,” Blaise bragged, “Lumos Maxima!” Harry snorted when Blaise’s wand ignited less space than his own had.

“You were saying?” Harry chided. 

“Shush now. Yeh four, ‘ere now,” he said as they approached a fork in the pathway, “We’re goin’ ter split inter two groups of three. ‘Arry, you, me, and Hermione will go this way an’ Neville, Zabini, and Fang will go that way.”

Zabini simply stuck his nose in the air and began walking down the right hand path, leaving Neville and Fang in the semidarkness. Neville jumped and squeaked and ran down the path after Zabini, his partially illuminated wand held aloft and Fang at his ankles. 

“Send up red sparks if yer in danger!” Hagrid yelled after the pair of children, “Ruddy kids. C’mon, let’s go.”

Hagrid, Harry, and Hermione spent the next twenty minutes walking down their respective pathway talking and catching up. Hermione praised Harry for what he learned in his lesson with Remus that evening and speculated on what else they would be working on through the rest of term. Hagrid had commented that it wouldn’t be anything overly complex because Harry is still a first year. 

“Shush, you two,” Hagrid said as he looked into the darkened trees, his bearded face stoic and full of concentration. “Get behind that tree!” he yelled suddenly as he hoisted them off the path and plopped them behind a towering oak tree. Then, suddenly, the group heard a rustling sound in the bushes and Hagrid lifted his enormous crossbow and loaded a bolt into it, holding it steady before him. 

Then, what looked like a bare-chested man attached to the body of a horse trotted onto the pathway in front of them, his face calm and curious. “Hagrid,” the creature said, “What are you doing in the forest so late at night? And with foals, too. We have told you how dangerous the forest is at night of late, Hagrid.”

“Oh, Ronan,” Hagrid said with recognition. He lowered his crossbow, “Yeh nearly gave me a ‘artattack. Kids, you can come out now. This is Ronan. ‘E’s a centaur. Ronan, this is Hermione Granger an’ Harry Potter. They’re students up at the school. ”

“Wow!” Hermione said as she took in Ronan’s large form, “I didn’t realize there were centaurs in the forest.”

“Indeed there are, little foal. We are many and consider the forest our home. Hagrid, we have continued to warn you of the dangers that lurk in the forest right now. It isn’t safe and you should return back to the school.”

“Noth’n in this ‘ere forest is goin’ ter hurt me, Ronan. We’re lookin’ fer what’s killin’ the unicorns. ‘Ave yeh seen anything?”

The centaur looked up unblinkingly at the star-filled sky, “Mars is bright tonight.”

“Yeah,” Hagrid said as he glanced up at the sky. Harry and Hermione did, too, but Harry wasn’t able to make out which bright blip was Mars, “Have yeh seen anythin’, Ronan?”

Ronan didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he continued to stare unblinkingly up at the sky and sighed, “Always the innocent are the first victims. So it has been for ages past, and so it is now.”

“Yeah. But have yeh seen anythin’? Anythin’ unusual?”

“Mars is bright tonight,” Ronan repeated, “Unusually bright.”

“I meant loser ter home, Ronan.”

“The forest hides many secrets,” Ronan said as he continued to look up at the sky.

Then, there was another movement behind Ronan which made Hagrid raise his bow again as a second centaur strode out of the forest.

“Hullo, Bane. All right?” Hagrid asked.

“Good evening, Hagrid. I hope you are well?”

“Well enough. Look, I’ve jus’ been askin’ Ronan—you seen anythin’ odd in here lately? About the unicorns.”

“We have told you something dark lurks in the forest, Hagrid,” Bane said as he strode to stand next to Ronan and look up at the sky, “Mars is bright tonight.”

“We’ve heard. Well, if either of yeh see anythin’, let me know. We’ll be off now.”

They made their way down the path again, leaving the gazing centaurs where the stood, fixated on the bright sky above them.

“Ruddy stargazers. Never interested in anything closer to home than the next planet.”

“Hagrid,” Hermione asked quietly, “What did they mean when they said they had warned you about what was in the forest?”

Hagrid made a noise of dismissal before responding, “Don’t worry abou’ it Hermione. Ain’t nothin’ in this forest that can scare me.”

“But if something’s been killing the unicorns,” Harry protested.

“It’s nothing to worry about,” Hagrid said.

After walking for twenty more minutes in stunned silence, Harry’s group saw the red sparks fly up into the air some 500 feet from them to the right. 

“Stay ‘ere,” Hagrid ordered as he bounded off the path and toward the red light.

“Do you think they’re ok?” Hermione asked Harry, her fingers overing her bottom lip as she looked, wide-eyed at the place where Hagrid disappeared, “If there’s something in here killing unicorns, it must be truly evil. I—I didn’t want to say anything and scare Neville, but unicorns are supposed to be the essence of good and all things pure. If something is killing them…”

Harry frowned, “Don’t we kill unicorns for the horns we use in potions?”

Hermione shook her head, “No. Don’t you pay attention in potions? Professor Snape mentioned once that unicorn horns are like deer antlers. They fall off a few times a year and regrow larger than before. They’re not without horns for very long, but it’s helped keep muggles confused about the existence of unicorns because, if they do catch one, often the unicorn sheds its horn before the muggle can show it off. Then it just looks like a regular, white horse. We use those discarded horns for potions.”

“I didn’t know that,” Harry admitted, “I’ll be honest, I tend to tune Snape out during class. I get tired of the snide comments he makes towards me or about my dads or uncles.”

“And the hairs,” Hermione continued. It seemed that she hadn’t noticed that Harry had spoken and was, instead, working on autopilot. “We get those from trees and branches. Their hair gets caught a lot and falls loose. That’s why unicorn hair is more expensive than horn—it’s thinner and harder to see and find than a horn. Hogwarts gets all of theirs—” Hermione stopped abruptly and squealed as they heard a rustling in the bush next to them. 

Hermione needn’t have worried as Hagrid stepped out from the brush pulling Blaise by his robes with Neville and Fang close at his heels. Hagrid was fuming as he walked back to Harry and Hermione, “Yeh ruddy little—we’ll be lucky if we can find anythin’ with the racket you two were makin’. Scaring summit in this forest isn’t a bright idea,” Hagrid chastised, “Right. We’re changin’ groups—Neville, you stay with me an’ Hermione, Harry, you go with Fang an’ this idiot. I’m sorry,” He added in a whisper to Harry, “but he’ll have a harder time frightenin’ you, an’ we’ve gotta get this done.”

Harry sighed and shot Blaise a dirty look. Blaise simply shrugged as they started walking down the path away from Hagrid and his friends. 

“Not my fault Longbottom scares easily. I didn’t even do anything to him. Stepped on a branch by accident.”

“Because I believe that. You’re a prat. Neville is a good person and you have no right picking on him.”

“He shouldn’t make himself an easy target. Honestly, I don’t know why you’re friends with him,” Blaise said arrogantly, “You’re famous. You could be friends with anyone in the school. I thought you were making good choices when you chose Draco as a friend and then he went and got sorted into Ravenclaw. Mother about had a heart attack when she heard that. We were close as children, you know. All the way up until we were sorted into separate houses.”

“If you were really that close with him,” Harry spat, “then you wouldn’t have ditched him when things got hard. Just because you’re in different houses doesn’t mean you can’t still be friends. I didn’t ditch him.”

“Maybe you’re a better person than I am,” Blaise said quietly as he looked down at the dirt path beneath their feet. 

“Wh—”

“Shush!” Blaise said as he held out his hand to stop Harry from moving forward further. Harry made to protest when he caught sight of something bright white laying, partially covered, on the ground in the clearing. As he looked around, Harry caught sight of more of the silvery blood around them. He had been so absorbed in their conversation that he hadn’t noticed the thickening of the amounts splattered around them. 

Harry realized quickly that it was dead. He had never seen anything so beautiful, yet so sad, in his life. What could have killed something that beautiful and pure? 

Then Harry noticed the cloaked figure bent over the sprawled creature, its head bent down, drinking the animal’s silvery blood. 

Thinking quickly, Harry slapped a hand over Blaise’s mouth, worried that the boy would scream and bring attention to them. But he hadn’t anticipated Fang’s booming bark which startled the figure. As the hooded figure raised its head, Fang bolted back down the pathway. As the silver blood dripped down from the hidden face, Harry’s legs clamped up and he couldn’t move. He looked next to him and saw Blaise standing, fear wide in his eyes, as the figure clambered to its feet. 

As it began gliding toward them, a pain like Harry had never felt in his life stabbed his forehead, causing his scar to split open and blood dripple down his face. Half blinded, Harry stumbled backward slightly. Blaise fell back, using his body to shield Harry, his wand up and out, pointed at the unknown figure.

“Get up, Potter! Get up and help me!”

But Harry couldn’t answer as the pain drove him to his knees as he heard hoofbeats behind him and something jumped clean over him and charged at the cloaked figure. Harry took a moment to himself to let the feeling pass. He could hear Blaise speaking to whatever had charged at the figure as he regained sight. When he looked up, he realized that the creature was a centaur, but it wasn’t those he had met before; Bane or Ronan. This one was younger with white-blonde hair and a palomino body.

“Are you two alright?” the centaur asked as he pulled Harry to his feet.

“Yes—thank you—what was that? Zabini, did you get a good look?”

Blaise shook his head as the centaur scanned Harry’s face, his blue eyes lingering on his forehead, “You are the Potter boy,” he stated, “you had better get back to Hagrid. The forest is not safe at this time—especially for you. Can you two ride? It will be faster that way. My name is Firenze,” he said as he lowered himself to the ground so Blaise and Harry could clamber onto his back. 

Once they were settled, another sound erupted from the end of the clearing—Bane and Ronan burst through the trees.

“Firenze!” Bane thundered, “What are you doing? You have humans on your back! Have you no shame? Are you but a common mule?”

“Do you realize who this is? This is the Potter boy. The quicker he leaves this forest the better it is for all.” 

“What have you told him?” Bane accused, “Remember, Firenze, we are sworn not to set ourselves against the heavens. Have we not read what is to come in the movements of the planets?”

Ronan pawed the ground nervously, “I’m sure Firenze thought he was acting for the best.”

“For the best! What is that to do with us? centaurs are concerned with what has been foretold! It is not our business to run around like donkeys after stray humans in the forest!”

“Do you not see that unicorn? Do you not understand why it was killed? Or have the planets not let you in on that secret? I set myself against what is lurking in this forest, Bane, yes, with humans alongside me if I must. And remember, the planets tell us what is to come, not when.”

With that, Firenze whisked around, Harry and Blaise clutching to his back and neck, and galloped away. 

“Why is Bane so angry?” Harry asked, “And what was that cloaked thing?”

Firenze slowed to a walk, warned Harry and Blaise to keep their heads bowed, but did not answer any questions. They walked in silence for a few minutes before Firenze finally spoke.

“Do either of you know what unicorn blood is used for?”

Harry shook his head but Blaise nodded, “It can be used in some potions—poisons mostly. The deadliest, and painful kind. But it can also be used in life-sustaining potions. But nobody brews those because of how difficult and dangerous it is to get unicorn blood.”

Firenze nodded, “Yes. That is because it is a monstrous thing, to slay a unicorn. But those are not the only uses. Only one who has nothing to lose, everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenseless to save yourself or kill another, and you will have but a half-life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood or potion touches your lips.”

“But who would be that desperate?” Harry asked.

“The last time a potion like that was use was during the war,” Blaise added solemnly.

Firenze nodded, “Unless all you need to do is stay alive long enough to drink something else—something to bring you back to full strength, death would be better than the price that comes with unicorn blood.”

Harry knew immediately what Firenze was indicating but kept his mouth shut. He didn’t trust Blaise with that information, “But I don’t understand who—” 

“Can you, either of you, think of nobody who has waited many years to return to power, who has clung to life, awaiting their chance?”

“The Dark Lord,” Blaise breathed. 

“Harry! Harry, are you alright?” Hermione was running toward them down the path, Hagrid puffing along behind her.

“We’re fine,” Harry said, “The unicorn’s dead. It’s in the clearing back that way.”

“This is where I leave you,” Firenze murmured as the children slid off his back, “You are safe now. Good luck, Harry Potter. The planets have been read wrongly before now, even by centaurs. I hope that this is one of those times.”

~ID~

The small group had quickly made their way back to the castle. It was much earlier than they had anticipated and Hagrid gave them permission to head to bed instead of waiting for Filch. By the time they got back Ron was already deep asleep and Harry didn’t want to wake Draco or Ginny to catch them up on the evening’s events. He considered telling his father or one of his uncles, but he didn’t want to worry them when nothing had actually happened to him. He was concerned about his scar hurting, though. And the fact that Voldemort was stalking the forest drinking unicorn blood. But what could they do about that? Yank him from Hogwarts? He couldn’t leave his friends, his home. He shook his head and headed to his empty and warm four-poster bed. 

When Harry pulled his sheets back, ready to allow sleep to overtake him, he was surprised to find a folded cloth and note laying there. In the dark, he couldn’t see, but as soon as he touched it he realized it was the invisibility cloak. He picked up the note and held it closely to his face so he could read it in the gloom. It contained only three words.

Just in case.

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


	52. Chapter Fifty-Two: For Your Protection

Author’s Notes:

Hi everyone! I want to apologize again for such a late update on my chapter. You guys and your patient waiting has been on my mind since my last update and I’m telling you, my friends and husband are sick of hearing about it. On top of my responsibilities (family, interviews, new job) I had massive writers block as I desperately tried to figure out how to get all of the characters where they needed to go. Once I finally worked that knot out, it really just flowed. 

That being said, I think I’m going to change my update schedule from once a week to once every other week. I start my new job as an ADA next week and I really need time to adjust to that schedule and make sure I’m handling all of my responsibilities appropriately. I am super excited to start this job though. Because of my experience I get to skip the normal grunt work in general criminal (DUI’s, petty theft, criminal mischief, that sort of thing) and go right into the Domestic Violence and Special Victims Unit. I’m so excited to be able to work in an area I’ve wanted to for a long time while also making the wages I’ve been hoping for. 

I hope you all have had a wonderful Holiday season and are back in the swing of things now. 

Reviews: Iwik: So, a lot of the first 3(ish) books will be similar to the originals. You’re going to start seeing some deviations in this chapter, but the larger, more impactful deviations are going to start at the end of the 3rd and definitely in the 4th. Some of this stuff I wanted to change, but can’t because of plots I have prepared for 5th-7th years. Minerdude: I have some ideas for Blaise that I haven’t fully formed or decided on. He’s definitely a wibbly character that has a lot of potential and I’m excited to see it bloom. ProfessorBowties: Really??? I had no idea. I thought boxing day was a Brits thing. The more you learn!! Here in my state in the US we have the first day of hunting season off. I guess it’s like that then? A kinda rando, cultural day off. 

Midnitewanderer: Omg I’m so glad you’re back! I’ve missed your reviews deeply! I’m back now too! Thank you for sticking with me and I hope work got better. I’m glad you enjoyed the Chonks bonding! I enjoyed writing the scene and I really hoped it was natural. I definitely have MAJOR plans for the werewolf registry for the upcoming chapters. It’ll be an interesting twist that I can’t wait to implement. I think the Mars thing was their indication of the prediction involving Harry’s death in the forest. But who knows. Bookboy: Thanks for reviewing!! I’m glad you’ve liked it and hope you enjoy this chapter! Nightwing2013: I’ll respond to all of yours all at once. I’m glad you’re enjoying rereading! So, with Lucy, since Sirius was super against Slytherin and his family basically disowned him, my assumption is that he didn’t speak much to Narcissa and, thereby, Lucy. Yes the pet names! And thank you, I’ll review that chapter again! Hippothestrowl: It’s wellknown that at the time of the Potter’s betrayal that there was suspect of an insider giving information to Voldemort. At the time, everyone suspected everyone and no one had any idea who it had been. Many people believed it to be either Remus or Sirius which is why, in cannon, Sirius opted not to be the secret keeper. At the time of writing my story’s first chapters, I hadn’t fleshed out everything I should have and I apologize for that. I hope this background information is helpful. 

Beer of the week: Cream Team Milk Stout from Flying Dog. this is by far the best cookies and cream stout I’ve ever had. Seriously. It’s smooth, flavorful without being overly sweet or artificial. It goes down way too well on a cold day and is a wonderful dessert. 

Posting schedule: Bi-monthly

Thank you again for sticking with me through my unannounced hiatus. I can’t wait to get into COS with you guys in the coming weeks!

Chapter Fifty-Two: For Your Protection

James found himself sitting in his in-home office staring blankly at the pages of income reports for the multiple Potter Family Investments when his mirror vibrated abnormally in his pocket. Frowning, he quickly took it out and glanced at the screen. Written on the frosted surface in neat, tidy handwriting were three words.

Harry was attacked.

James nearly fainted as all the air left his body. Black spots appeared in his vision as he stared at the melting words. Then he sprung into action.

“Sirius!” James yelled as he rushed out of his office, “Sirius! Get your ass to the library! Harry was attacked!”

The door several rooms down from him burst open as a naked Sirius fell through the opening, “Bugger! What’s going on, Prongs? I was in the middle of important things. What’s going on with Harry?”

“He’s been attacked!” James shouted exasperatedly, “Get your cock into a pair of pants and come on, man!”

“Harry’s been—is he ok?” Sirius asked, springing to his feet and racing back into his room.

“No, no—I have to—no I have to go,” James could hear Sirius saying to someone he couldn’t see.

“But, Siri—” a voice said softly.

“It’s Harry.” 

“Go. Go and then write to me.”

James quickly turned away from the door and pretended as if he hadn’t been listening as Sirius raced back through the doorway. He made it halfway down the stairwell before turning back to James, “Aren’t you coming? Come on, mate!”

“Who’s in your room?” James asked as he jogged to catch back up with Sirius.

Sirius looked away and rubbed his face with his hand, “No one. Just a woman from the pub.”

“Just a wom—” James and Sirius skidded into the library and dashed to the fireplace, “Padfoot, no, Padfoot listen, why would she understand how important Harry is to you if she’s ‘just a woman from the pub’?”

“Harry’s what’s important right now, Prongs,” Sirius replied calmly, his eyes hard and full of fear as he threw floo powder into the fireplace. James watched as the deep green light engulfed his friend’s features before they stepped into the fireplace. 

~ID~

“You did what?” Harry shouted, incredulity and betrayal discernable in his voice. 

“Blimey, mate,” Ron said, frowning, “Mr. Potter will yank him out of Hogwarts.”

“Better pulled from classes than dead,” Draco replied quietly and calmly. He stared pointedly at his hands which were clasped firmly in his lap, the skin white and taut against his bones as he squeezed what little life was left out of them. “If—if that was the Dark Lord, that means he’s here, somewhere, at Hogwarts. And, more importantly, that means he knows Harry is here. From what Father has told me, the Dark Lord will never rest if he knows Harry is alive and near.”

“Draco, this means the Stone will be completely unprotected! No one knows about Snape trying to steal it! No one who can do anything about it, anyway,” Harry spat. 

“We can tell Dumbledore,” Hermione suggested, “He’s always been close to your family, Harry. He may believe us.”

“Dumbledore trusts Snape,” Harry snapped, “Do you really think he would believe that Snape is after the Stone?”

“Hey! There’s no need to snap at her. She didn’t do anything to you. Just because you’re angry at me doesn’t mean you get to take it out on her.”

Harry’s eyes flared dark green as he rounded on Draco, “If you hadn’t said anything we wouldn’t be in this mess. Why would you do that? You weren’t even there—you don’t know that that was Voldemort.”

“According to Firenze, it was. And, if it truly was the Dark Lord, then he will not stop until you’re dead, Harry. You’re my best mate. I can’t let that happen.”

“Harry,” Hermione said quietly, “I agree with Draco on this. If You-Know-Who really was in the forest last night, it isn’t safe for you here anymore.” 

“Well I for one think Draco should have kept his mouth shut,” Ron supplied, “It’s none of our business whether Harry tells his dad or not. What? It’s not.”

Harry looked up to see Hermione giving Ron a reproachful look. 

“Quiet! It’s McGonagall.” Draco hissed. 

The four children quickly looked down at their work, trying to appear absorbed in their assignments as they heard McGonagall’s footsteps get louder as she approached them.

“Mr. Potter,” Harry looked up at McGonagall, “please come with me.”

“Yes, professor,” Harry replied solemnly as he began packing his things up. As they walked out of the library Harry asked, in a barely audible tone, “Is my dad here to take me home?”

He peeked out from under the fringe of his hair to look at McGonagall. When he caught sight of the thin line that was her mouth he knew the answer without having to hear it. 

“James and Sirius have arrived to take you home, yes. We will discuss the terms of that decision in my office.”

“Nana, I need to tell you something before I go!” 

Shocked, McGonagall replied, “What is it, Harry?”

“I think someone is trying to steal the Philosopher’s Stone,” he whispered, “And I think it’s Professor Snape. He used to be a Death Eater and he’s been acting really suspiciously and—”

“Harry,” McGonagall interrupted as she stopped in the hallway to look at him, “Firstly, I have no idea how you found out about the Stone. Secondly, why do you think Severus is trying to steal it? What evidence do you have?”

Harry took a deep breath before continuing, “Well, Hermione and Draco saw him muttering something during the match where my broom was cursed. He wasn’t breaking eye contact and I didn’t get control over my broom until after Hermione made him lose eye contact.”

“Ms. Granger set that fire?” McGonagall asked, her eyebrows arching.

“Yes, keep up, Nana. Then, during Halloween, he had a bite on his leg. I think he snuck up to the third floor to try to get passed Fluffy, the three-headed dog that guards the trap door.”

“How do you know about the dog?”

“We stumbled upon him, Nana. Keep up! Then I saw him confronting Quirrell, trying to get him to tell Snape what his enchantment is that’s protecting the Stone. Why would he do that if he wasn’t trying to get in? Snape threatened Quirrell, Nana!”

“These are very serious accusations, Harry.”

“It’s all true Nana. Why would I lie to you?”

McGonagall thought about that for a moment before she continued to walk down the corridor, “Harry, I’ve known you for nearly ten years now and I have never known you to lie. I believe that this is what you’ve witnessed and this is what you believe. But you need to let the adults do the protecting here. You were attacked in the Forest during your detention, we are aware that there is someone after the Stone, but we do not know definitively who it is. Let me do my job, Harry. Ok?”

“But you and Dumbledore know that someone is after it?”

“Now that we know about the events in the Forest last evening, yes, we are aware. And we are making efforts to better protect the Stone.”

“No! You need to move the Stone!”

McGonagall suddenly stopped and turned to look at Harry as she placed her hands on his shoulders, “Harry, moving the Stone right now is not an option. That would be a prime opportunity for the would-be thief to take it. Please, trust us to keep it safe.”

Harry frowned and thought for a moment before nodding slowly.

McGonagall let out a sigh of relief, “Thank you. Now come along. James is waiting.”

The rest of the walk to McGonagall’s office Harry’s heart was pounding in his chest. Was his dad really going to pull him from Hogwarts before classes were over? Would Dumbledore believe Nana about the Stone?

Thoughts and worries swirled around his mind as he stepped into McGonagall’s office and saw his dad, Remus, and Sirius pacing around the room. The moment they caught sight of Harry they rushed to his side and engulfed him in a bone shattering hug. 

“Harry! Thank gods you’re ok.”

Harry glanced over his father’s shoulders at Remus and Sirius and smiled half-heartedly at them, “Hi Uncle Padfoot, Uncle Moony.”

“Don’t you ‘Uncle Padfoot’ me, Harry. Do you want to sit down and explain to us exactly what happened?”

Harry frowned as James pulled back from him, “Well, you see…”

McGonagall took her seat behind her desk and waived her wand, causing four cushy armchairs to magically appear and land behind each of the men in the room, “Please, sit. And explain.”

All four of them carefully took their seats. Harry couldn’t help but notice his father and Sirius both looking as if they were prepared to listen to a lecture before relaxing in their seats. He wondered if that was some kind of residual reaction to being in his nana’s office. 

“Well, I was having my detention with Hermione, Neville, Zabini, and Hagrid and we were told we had to go into the forest to find the injured unicorn. We ended up splitting into two groups when the path split and I was put with Zabini because he scared Neville. Then we walked up on something—something in a dark cloak drinking—drinking blood from a dead unicorn. When it—saw me—it came towards me and my scar hurt. It’s never hurt like that. I thought—well I thought it was Voldemort. 

“Anyway, the cloaked figure was coming at me and I fell—Zabini, he tried to defend me when I couldn’t get back up right away. He—he stood in front of me and held his wand up. Then Firenze showed up and drove the figure away. He stayed with us until Hagrid came to get us. 

“Nothing else happened and I wasn’t hurt. I swear.”

James stared at Harry, his ever-changing eyes a dark sea blue as he took in his son’s form. Then, his eyes caught sight of Harry’s forehead, “You said you weren’t hurt!” he exclaimed as he brushed Harry’s hair away from his scar and examined the recently opened wound, “Your scar bled.”

Everyone in the room sat up stock straight, their eyes glued to Harry’s forehead as James examined him. McGonagall quickly stood up and whipped around her desk to personally examine Harry more closely. 

“Harry, why didn’t you go to the hospital wing? This could have been healed right away.”

Harry shrugged, “It stopped bleeding and I honestly forgot about it.”

Sirius and Remus looked at James who nodded silently at them, “Harry,” James said, “can you please step outside the office so we can talk?”

Harry frowned, “Why can’t I stay? This is about me and being able to stay at Hogwarts. Shouldn’t I be involved in that conversation?”

“Normally I would say yes, but not this time. There’s—we need to discuss stuff that you aren’t a part of.”

“But this has to do with me and my life. Shouldn’t I have a say?”

“No,” James said more forcefully, “Harry, I promise that I will always keep you informed of anything you need to be, but you need to trust us to tell you what you should know when you need to know.”

“So you’re going to kick me out of the room,” Harry said slowly, his anger rising, “while you discuss my immediate future? You’re discussing whether I should stay at Hogwarts but that isn’t something I need to be informed about?”

James’ eyes hardened as he looked at his son. He took a moment to compose himself before responding but Sirius beat him to it, “No, it’s not something you need to be informed about right now.”

“So you all feel that way?” Harry folded his arms over his chest.

Remus eyed James and Sirius, a frown on his face, “Well, quite frankly, no. We aren’t all in agreement. James, I personally think Harry has the right to hear what we’re discussing. It involves his future in more than one way.”

James’ eyes flashed as he turned to look at Remus. He stared at Remus, his eyes hard and his face straight and taught. “I was under the impression,” James paused to take a deep breath, “that we were all on the same page with this decision.”

“Being on the same page and being in agreement are two different things, Prongs. I understand that you two think this is the best course of action but, given the circumstances that we are aware of, I don’t agree with the decision.”

“The circumstances,” James spat, “doesn’t change that there are others out there.”

“And much more of them than just the one we had been worried about originally. Shouldn’t Harry be made aware of that?”

James gave Remus a hard look before turning to McGonagall, “I think we’ve decided to take Harry out of Hogwarts for the remainder of the term.”

McGonagall nodded, “And classes? End of year exams?”

“We’ll allow him to floo in each morning in time for classes but he’ll be required to floo back during breaks and after classes end. Any detentions he may earn can be overseen by Remus in his office or the like.”

“You can’t just force me to come home! I have friends and quidditch and—”

James looked at Harry, “Harry can continue with quidditch so long as one of the three of us are allowed to supervise his practices so there isn’t any unapproved wanderings. And, yes, I absolutely have the power to force you to live at home.”

“That—that’s absolutely archaic!” Harry shouted. 

“Harry,” Remus said calmly, “Harry, listen, we’re doing this for your benefit—”

“My benefit?” Harry spat, “My benefit would be taking my opinions into consideration. You’re not doing that.”

“Harry, you were attacked. On school grounds non the less. How exactly do you expect us to react to that? We don’t know who it is or how they managed to get onto the property. For all we know they could be hiding inside of the castle. And there’s only a few weeks of term left, anyway,” Remus replied softly. His calm and reassuring voice helping to ease the tension in the room.

“Uncle Moony, you’re not seriously on board with this, are you? I mean, you’re here in the castle with me!”

“And yet this all occurred under my watch. Harry, none of us is willing to risk your life or safety just so you can run around with your friends. I’m sure that, once we determine how this occurred, you’ll be allowed to return to Hogwarts full-time. Please, work on this with us so that we can keep you safe.”

Harry folded his arms and stared at his father with contempt and loathing. After a breath, he countered, “I get to stay for lunches. And come for breakfast when I want to.”

“This isn’t a nego—”

“Done. We’ll give you until seven to pack your trunk and let your friends know what’s going on and why you’re not staying at Hogwarts for now,” Remus interjected as he looked cautiously at James.

“Go,” James snapped as he stared at Remus, “Be back at Remus’ office at seven.”

The group watched as Harry shoved his hands in his pockets and slowly made his way to the door and looked back.

“Close it on your way out, please,” James asked, the anger still evident in his voice.

Harry nodded and reluctantly closed the door. The group waited a moment before McGonagall spoke, “Well, I think that went better than expected.”

James held up a finger and looked back at the door again as he pointed his wand, “Muffliato. Impervious. There. That should help him from being able to eavesdrop on us.”

“You think he’d eavesdrop?” McGonagall asked, shocked.

The three men simply stared at her in astonishment and disbelief.

Sirius clutched at his chest, a pained expression on his face, “Honestly, Minnie, I’m so disappointed. That actually hurt. You would believe that we didn’t teach that boy anything.”

McGonagall frowned and then rolled her eyes, “Of course. Look at who I’m speaking to. In any case, you know that I don’t fully support this decision but it’s not mine to make. However, as Harry’s head of house I will make sure that the agreement we’ve come to is upheld and that Harry is watched carefully while he’s within the walls of this school.”

“Do we have any idea who it was out in the forest?” James asked, “Or how they managed to make it passed the school’s protections and boundaries?”

Remus and McGonagall shook their heads, “It must be someone exceptionally skilled at bypassing protective measures,” McGonagall started.

“Or someone at the school granted the individual permission to enter the grounds,” Remus added gravely, “Either way, this person is clearly dangerous. We—the professors, Albus, and I—have been working tirelessly since the occurrence to figure out who they are and how this happened. As of now I believe Albus thinks someone here at Hogwarts granted the person permission as there has been no sign that the warding was breached. Who did, however, is still unknown.”

“Are there any leads?” James asked.

Sirius shook his head, “Tonks and I have been assigned to the case for investigative purposes but we haven’t found anything yet. We have been able to rule out a few of the professors—Dumbledore, Minnie, Mooney, the usual suspects. I’m keeping Snivellus on the table, personally, and Nymphy agrees with me on that front.”

Remus snorted, “Good lord don’t let her catch you calling her Nymphy. She’ll curse your buttocks off.”

Sirius shrugged, “Anyway, we’re on the case but so far it’s been cold. The warding definitely hadn’t been mettled with and were still intact when we checked them.”

“And there’s no way it was You-Know-Who?” McGonagall asked.

All three men shook their heads as James responded, “No. We destroyed the artifact that could have tethered him to this world. He couldn’t have been here.”

McGonagall hesitated, her lips a taught line across her face, before replying, “You three know you’re like family to me. Sure, you were hellions as children, but you were always inherently good children and I love you all. So, please, take my advice with a grain of salt. I have known Albus for nearly a half a century and in all that time I have known him to be a brilliant man capable of formulating and executing ingenious plots and plans. However, there has never been a time that I’ve known him when those plans have be executed without fault, mistake, or mishap. Whatever it is he had you do, know that there is most likely more accompanied with that task that you aren’t aware of.”

James, Sirius, and Remus looked at one another carefully before each nodding. James turned to McGonagall and took a deep breath, “Minnie, perhaps it’s time we tell you what’s really been going on.”

~ID~

Harry could feel his magic building with his anger his entire trip back to Gryffindor Tower. He either didn’t notice or didn’t care about the loud bangs from suits of armor and portraits falling on the floor that followed him down the winding corridors. By the time he reached the common room, his radiating magic was nearly a glowing aura around his body.

“Yule log!” Harry shouted at the Fat Lady.

“There’s no need to shout. I do have working ears you know,” she snapped back as she swung open to allow him entrance. 

As he stomped in Harry caught sight of Ron and Hermione sitting by the fireplace. Ron had his head in his hand, his quill moving slowly around his parchment as he worked on his homework. Rather than attempt to answer questions in front of all of Gryffindor Tower, Harry stormed passed them, hoping they would catch sight of him and come up to the dormitory after him. 

He was half way through packing up his trunk, albeit haphazardly, when Ron and Hermione finally found him in the dormitory. They watched him curiously as he tore his telescope apart and threw the pieces into his trunk and turned back to his bed, looking for any leftover objects. 

“What’s with the spring cleaning?” Ron asked as he flopped down on Harry’s bed and produced a chocolate frog from his pocket and began munching on it. 

Harry glared at Ron as he shoved some socks into the corner of his trunk, “My dads found out about what happened in the forest. I’m moving home for the rest of the term.”

“What about end of year exams? We still have a week of classes!” Hermione asked, outraged. 

Harry shrugged, “I get to come back during the day for classes and exams. And I get to have lunch here. But not breakfast or dinner and I sleep at home.”

“Do they honestly think something else is going to happen to you?” Ron asked, his mouth full of chocolate.

“They don’t want to risk it.”

“Oh, but Harry, this might be the best option. We don’t know who—or what—that was in the forest. What if it does come after you? It’s concerning it’s on the school grounds.”

Just then a very sweaty and out of breath Draco came wheezing into the dormitory, holding his mirror up, “I—heard—about—packing.”

Harry frowned, “How—”

Ron casually held up Harry’s mirror, “This fell out of your pocket. I called Draco while you were throwing rubbish about.”

“How did you get into the tower?” Hermione asked, frowning, “No one but Gryffindor’s are supposed to be able to enter the house common rooms.”

Draco shook his head, “Nah. Normally people can’t get into other houses because of passwords and stuff but since I knew where your entrance was, I just waited until someone came by and let me in. Fred and George made fun of me for a few minutes before saying the password, but they let me in eventually.

“I know this seems like the worst thing in the world, and it’s pretty bad right now, but maybe this will be a good thing. James, Sirius, and Remus are just trying to do what they think is best.”

“Look, since I’m going to be gone you guys are going to have to keep an eye on Fluffy and the Stone. I’ll help while I’m here, but Nana knows that we know. I’ll leave my cloak so that you guys can use it to keep hidden from her and the other Professors.” 

“I don’t know about this, Harry,” Hermione frowned. 

“Do you want Snape to get the Stone? This is the only defense we have left.”

“Don’t worry mate, we’re with you on this,” Ron assured as he tussled Harry’s hair.

“Yeah,” Draco nodded, “we’ll do what needs to be done. And if that means staking out Snape, then so be it.”

~ID~

“Albus, I really think there’s some merit to their concerns,” McGonagall argued to a stoic and calm Albus Dumbledore later that evening. The only sounds that could be heard were the small puffing of smoke from his various instruments, the crackling of the fire, and Fawkes’ various crooning sounds. “I don’t think Severus is the issue, or the one going after the Stone, but I think Harry is right. Someone is after it and I think we need to strengthen our patrols. Especially after the incident in the Forest.”

“Minerva,” Dumbledore said as if he were speaking to a child, “I assure you that our protections are sufficient. There is no one in this school who could possibly benefit from stealing the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“There is clearly something sinister going on here at Hogwarts,” McGonagall argued, “The incident involving Harry and the Forbidden Forest is evidence of that.”

“I have taken great lengths to protect the Stone. Only someone who doesn’t want to use the Stone would be able to find it—this I can assure you of.”

“Albus, I don’t think you’re taking this breach of security seriously.”

“I’m unsure of how much more seriously I could take this breach,” Dumbledore said seriously, “If you recall, we had the aurors here to investigate immediately upon being informed of the incident.”

“And they found that someone within the school must have granted the attacker permission to enter the grounds,” McGonagall reminded him, “Which should have triggered an inquiry as to this breach. We haven’t had issues of this magnitude since the war. And even then, those incidents never reached the school grounds. There are few members of staff who have been added to our school in the last decade. I propose we make a list of those individuals who have joined our ranks since You-know-Who’s downfall and we vet those individuals through thorough investigation.”

“Don’t worry, Minerva, everything is under control,” Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and gave McGonagall a soft smile as his eyes twinkled from behind his spectacles. 

~ID~

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco quickly found themselves in the throws of end of year exams. Though they had complained about the study schedule Hermione and Draco had made, Ron and Harry were secretly happy they had followed it. They both knew they wouldn’t receive top marks in any class, but they at least felt comfortable knowing that they passed for the year. 

As they walked out of their last exam for the term, the small group of four found themselves sitting outside during the particularly fine afternoon under a beech tree by the lake. They had piled their cloaks on the ground as they tried to soak up as much sun as they could. Ron had immediately flopped down and lain on his back. Harry thought he could hear him snoring already despite having only lain down a few minutes prior. 

“Is James letting you come back for the end of term feast?” Draco asked as he pretended to be occupied with his journal. 

“Yeah. Dad said it’s an important event and it’s highly unlikely that anything will happen to me during it.”

“It’s good James is letting you come,” Hermione said, “I still think he’s in the right keeping you home in the evenings though.”

“Hermione,” Ron wined, “don’t get started on this again. You’ll only piss them off. You’re lucky they’re even talking as it is.”

“Honestly, Ronald, neither of them should be angry with the other to begin with.”

“Come off calling me Ronald!” Ron chided as he turned pink.

“Do you two ever give it a rest?” Draco asked, “Honestly, you’re like walking timebombs.”

Harry leaned back and looked out over the lake, “I wonder if Nana told Dumbledore about Snape and the Stone.”

Ron snorted, “Probably not. Honestly, Harry, do you expect her to?”

“Yeah, kind of, actually.”

“Well I—”

“I think it’s time for you to leave, Harry,” Draco said quietly, “I see Remus coming this way.”

Harry groaned and threw his arm over his eyes, “They never stop. Honestly, I can’t get a moment to myself. When I’m at home, dad and Uncle Sirius are always all over me. I know they missed me but that’s ridiculous.”

“Harry!” Remus called from across the grounds, “Harry come on! James is expecting us for dinner.”

“Am I being punished now too? Why’s he yelling across the grounds like that? Everyone will hear him,” Harry muttered as he snatched up his robes and bag, “I’ll see you guys tomorrow, I guess.”

Draco, Ron, and Hermione watched as Harry stomped away, blew passed Remus, and made his way into the castle. 

“Well then,” Ron said as he sat up, “Early dinner?”

It wasn’t long before Ron was sitting happily at the Gryffindor table with his plate piled high with food. Draco and Hermione were discussing what they thought the correct answers on their exams had been. Hermione was especially worried that she had improperly explained the theory behind transfiguring a match into a needle. Draco tried to assure her she had explained it properly to no avail. 

“Hey,” Ron interrupted as he gestured with a chicken wing, “Where’s Dumbledore?” 

Draco and Hermione’s heads whipped around to look at the head table where they, too, caught sight of the glaringly empty head seat typically occupied by Albus Dumbledore.

“That can’t be good,” Draco whispered.

“He might just be eating in his office,” Hermione said slowly.

“Course not, he always eats here in the hall,” Ron supplied.

Draco and Hermione eyed each other as Ron continued eating his dinner. Draco briefly wondered where he managed to put all of his food once he ate it because he never seemed to gain any weight. 

Once they’d finished dinner the three of them headed back to their common rooms to have a quiet evening. Or hoped to have a quiet evening is the more appropriate language. Nearly as soon as Draco entered Ravenclaw tower her caught sight of his family’s Eagle owl sitting on the widow ledge waiting for him to let it in. He glanced around the nearly empty room before dashing over to receive the letter the bird had brought him. He quickly tore it open and read through the neat handwriting. He couldn’t believe what he had read.

Draco,

Your behavior this past year has been exceptionally disappointing. You have been an utter disgrace to the Malfoy family name. Your mother and I have given you chance after chance to correct this poor behavior to no avail and I shall never forgive your mother for introducing you to that wretched Potter family. 

Despite you failing the multitudes of opportunities I have presented you, I shall once again provide another. I have received notice from an old colleague that in approximately 5 hours our Dark Lord shall finally be in possession of the object that shall return him to full power. As I understand it, you and your gang of ne’er-do-wells have been doing everything within your limited power to circumvent this momentous occasion. It is my assumption that you have already determined this is the situation and that it will be occurring imminently. Should you wish to continue to remain in my good graces, in any sense of the phrase, you will not impede these plans. Under no circumstances will you act on this information and alert any authorities including, but not limited to, Albus Dumbledore. 

Do not disappoint me, Draco. Do not continue to disappoint this family. And, as a gentle reminder, your grandfather intends to visit our home sometime early this summer. I look forward to being able to tell him about your success in this regard. 

Lord Lucius Abraxas Malfoy II

Draco carefully lifted his wrist and looked at his watch. Assuming the timing was correct, Snape would be heading for the Stone around midnight that night. He sat quietly as he folded and unfolded the letter, his eyes staring into the bright red flames of the fire. A part of him wished that deciding what to do was a difficult choice. But the other half of him knew that, if it were, he wouldn’t be the person that he is. The most difficult part of it all was how to go about his decision. 

It was such a difficult plan to make that Draco hadn’t fully formed it, and decided to act on it, until nearly quarter to midnight. When he finally looked away from the dancing flames, Draco was shocked to realize that the common room was devoid of life. He had been so absorbed in is plan tha the hadn’t noticed others trickling off to bed. As he slowly looked around the room he nodded to himself—this would work well. He slowly pulled his mirror from his pocket and took a deep breath before saying Harry’s name. 

“Blimey,” called a voice from the other end of the mirror, “It’s midnight Draco. Why are you trying to call Harry?”

“Ron?” Draco asked as the familiar, freckled face appeared in the mirror, “Why do you have Harry’s mirror?”

“Harry left it by accident today. It must have fallen out of his pocket when our robes were all piled up this afternoon because I found it tangled in my sleeve. He did leave in quite a hurry. I figured when he realized it he’d call you and ask for it.

“What do you want Harry for, anyway?”

“I—well—I just—”

Ron looked at Draco’s pale face, scrutinizing his expressions. “Look, I know I can be thick when it comes to people and stuff, but please don’t tell me you were planning on going off to the third floor and convincing Harry to come with you.”

“Well—you see, I got this letter—from my father—”

Ron’s eyes widened and Draco could tell he had sat up further in his bed, “Your father? About the Stone?”

Draco nodded slowly, “It’s no big deal. I was just going to check on Fluffy—to be sure.”

“Let me get Hermione.”

“What—no! Ron!” Draco said to the empty mirror, “Bollocks!” 

Draco stood up and quickly made his way through the concealed door and slowly crept down the stairwell. Once he’d reached the sixth floor, Draco crept through the corridor, glancing around corners before continuing toward the staircase that would take him to the third floor. He hoped beyond hope that Ron and Hermione wouldn’t follow him and, once they realized he’d gone in, they contacted Dumbledore for help. 

Somehow, beyond his belief, Draco managed to make his way to the door that concealed Fluffy. He carefully leaned his ear against the door and listened intently to the soft, musical noise he could hear through the thick oak. Slowly and cautiously, Draco pulled the door open and peeked his head inside of the room. 

His eyes widened as he caught sight of the massive cerberus sleeping in the center of the room. A stand-alone harp was sitting in the corner playing a soft and soothing melody which was accompanied by the deep, grumbling snores of the dog. Draco tiptoed his way into the room and pulled the door quietly shut behind him. When Fluffy’s snores paused, Draco froze in place, praying that the animal hadn’t awaken. 

Draco waited a few moments after Fluffy had resumed snoring before he moved further into the room, opened the trapdoor, and peered inside. Upon realizing he couldn’t see into the room below, Draco quickly lit his wand and laid down on the floor, hoping to point his wand as far into the hole as he could to see what laid below. 

Once he realized all he could see was darkness, Draco took a deep breath and leapt into the unknown.

~ID~

Harry woke with a start as he felt his hand suddenly blaze with heat. Turning on the light beside him, Harry lifted the mirror to his face, socked to see Ron and Hermione looked back at him, surprise and fear in their eyes.

“Harry!” Hermione said in a harsh whisper, “Harry why do you have Sirius’ mirror?”

“I lost mine at school. I nicked it in case one of you found it and called me. I guess you did find it,” he added annoyed, “Why didn’t you tell me? And why are you calling at, gods, midnight?”

The pair looked at one another, their faces white, before Ron turned back to Harry, “It’s Draco. He went to the Stone. He wanted to check to make sure nothing happened to it and I’ve tried calling him again but he won’t answer. We’re worried and with Dumbledore out of the school—”

“Dumbledore isn’t at the school?” Harry said loudly as he sat up in bed, “What do you mean Dumbledore isn’t at Hogwarts?”

“Well,” Hermione said slowly, “he wasn’t at dinner and he never misses dinner so we assumed—”

“That he’d left for the night,” Ron finished timidly, “Harry—Harry don’t do what I think you’re going to do. We’re already here at the door. We had to petrify Neville and everything. You should have seen Hermione do it. It was bloody brilliant.”

“Why did you petrify Neville?”

“Later. We’re about to go in.”

“No, wait for me! I’ll be there in 15 minutes.”

“Harry—” Hermione started.

“Wait for me.”

Harry quickly put the mirror in his pocket and dash out of his room. He carefully tiptoed his way down the hall and stairs, making his way to the library so he could use the fireplace. After glancing around the first floor, making sure he was alone, Harry flooed to Remus’ office at Hogwarts. 

~ID~

“No, no, you move your wrist like this,” James said as he twisted his wrist and flicked his wand, turning the rat in front of him into a goblet in the process, “I think that’s your issue. Go ahead and give it a go.”

The younger boy nodded determinedly, “Like this?” he asked as he twisted his wrist as well. The boy smiled as his own rat turned into a hairy goblet with a tail-like stem.

“That’s it! a bit more practice and you should get it right. You really need to visualize what you want the goblet to look like. Picture the clear crystal and the embellishments in your mind as you say the spell and do the movements. The true power in transfiguration is your ability to picture the outcome.”

The boy concentrated, sticking his tongue out through his lips as he thought about the process of the spell. Then he twisted his wrist and watched delightedly as the rat turned into a beautiful, crystal goblet.

“I did it! I did it! Thank you, James!” 

“No problem Steve. I knew you could. It’s all about the right movements and getting in the right headspace,” he encouraged as he heard a noise in the doorway to the empty transfiguration classroom. James briefly glanced up and caught sight of a beautiful redheaded girl with brilliantly green eyes softly smiling at the pair of boys huddled around a work table. “Steve, why don’t you practice a couple more times. I need to speak to the head girl for a moment.”

“Sure thing, James!” 

James ran his fingers through his already messy black hair and flashed a crooked grin at Lily before slowly making his way to the entryway. 

“Evans! What a wonderful surprise. What brings you to my tutoring lessons? And so early in the school year I might add.”

Lily rolled her eyes, “I heard you were hosting tutoring in here but I couldn’t believe it without seeing it for myself. And you’ve actually managed to convince a student to come. What on earth are you on about doing this?”

James frowned, “What do you mean, Evans? McGonagall sanctioned my sessions—actually, she’s sent me a few individuals from her classes.”

“And, what, this is in exchange for a detention? Multiple detentions?”

“No,” James shook his head, “Minnie pulled me aside after our first class and asked if I would be willing to tutor younger students and I agreed. I like transfiguration. Plus I had to tutor Wormy during fifth year so he could pass his O.W.L.’s. And, if you recall, he managed and Exceeds Expectations in transfiguration thanks to me.”

Lily’s eyes widened as her lips parted slightly, as if she were going to gape at James, “You—you’re the one that tutored Peter? My god he couldn’t so much as transfigure a hedgehog into a pin cushion.”

“That’s why Minnie asked me to tutor the younger students. She thought it would look good to have the head boy assisting outside of his usual duties.”

Lily frowned, “What’s with the sudden change in attitude, Potter? You’re not the kind of person to tutor kids without some sort of gain.”

“I’ve always tutored other kids, Evans. You’ve just been too busy saying no to me to notice. I mean, I have a heart, Lils. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have another student coming in five minutes and I need to finish out with Steve here.”

Lily nodded and watched James walk away from her. Then she hesitated and called out to him, “James?”

James turned around and smiled his lopsided smile at Lily, “Evans?”

“James I’m sorry for being so harsh. I—it was wrong of me.”

“S’okay, Lils,” James said as he turned back towards Steve.

“What? You’re not going to make some comment about making it up to you?”

“Nah. It’s never worked before. Why would it now? I’ll talk to you later, Lils.”

Lily stayed standing in the door way and bit her lip. She watched silently as James finished up his lesson with Steve and sent him on his way, leaving the pair alone in the transfiguration classroom. 

“Evans! You’re still here?”

Lily bit her lip again and smiled shyly at James, “I—yeah. James,” Lily slowly made her way toward James, “I wanted to ask you—"

James awoke to the shrill sound of the floo alarm going off in his ear. For a few moments James couldn’t comprehend what the noise was or why it had rudely awaken him from such a wonderful dream. It had been about the day Lily had finally agreed to go out with him. Well, the day she had asked him out, if he were completely honest with himself. 

Then the seriousness of the alarm sunk in to him and he jumped out of bed. The floo alarm had gone off. Why had the alarm gone off? Who was in the Manor? Or, more importantly, who had left?

James spent the next half hour searching the entire Manor for anyone who could have come in by floo. At first he thought maybe Remus had decided to spend the evening at home rather than his suite at Hogwarts. But, when he didn’t find Remus anywhere in the Manor, James realized his mistake and dashed to Harry’s room, his heart ready to leap out of his chest. 

~ID~

Hidden under his invisibility cloak, Harry dashed down the corridor and tore through a tapestry into a hidden passageway that would take him right to the door concealing Fluffy. As he turned a corner he caught sight of Ron and Hermione standing in front of the door, their faces pale and scared. Puffing for breath, Harry ran up to them and tore his cloak from his body.

“Draco?”

“Already inside,” Ron said, his voice low and trembling, “Should we—should we go in after him?”

“We should get a professor,” Hermione whispered, “We have no idea what’s waiting under that trap door.”

Harry shook his head, “There isn’t time. We have to go get him. He could be hurt!”

Hermione and Ron glanced at one another before slowly nodding.

“Ok. Hermione, can you unlock the door?”

Hermione nodded and turned toward the door. She held up her wand before she frowned, “It’s already open. That idiot didn’t even shut the door behind him.”

She carefully pulled the door open and peeked her head inside. Turning back, she motioned for Ron and Harry to follow her into the room, “It’s sleeping. Someone left a harp playing in the corner.”

The three friends tiptoed into the room and quietly closed the door behind them. Hermione made sure that it latched so that it wouldn’t swing back open, revealing someone had gone into the room. They quickly made their way to the trap door and opened it, revealing its darkened interior. 

“How deep do you think it is?” Ron asked, “Is it safe to jump?”

Harry sighed, “Look, let me go first. If I don’t call out to you, you’ll know it’s not safe and you should leave.”

“No, I should jump in—” Ron started to say when Harry jumped into the gaping hole, ignoring everything Ron had said. 

“Merlin’s pants!” Ron hissed, “Alright, let’s go.”

Ron quickly jumped into the hole in the floor, pulling Hermione with him. 

The three friends made quick work of the devil’s snare and the flying key room. The next room, however, stopped them in their tracks.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stepped into the large stone room illuminated completely by moonlight. Their eyes were immediately drawn to the large pillar in the center of the room and the 8 phases of the moon floating around the room in a wide circle. And standing right by the pillar, scrutinizing it with his deep, grey eyes, was Draco Malfoy.

“Draco!” Hermione shouted as she ran over to him and threw her arms around his neck, “We were so worried something happened to you! How could you be so stupid to come on your own!”

“Yeah mate, what’s your deal?”

Shocked, Draco hugged Hermione back before stepping away, his face pale and translucent, “I got that letter from my dad—I had to stop Snape. I—I don’t want to know what happens to me, my family, if the Dark Lord returns.”

“Draco, we would have come with you! Hell, we came after you,” Harry said exasperatedly, “We’re just glad you’re ok.”

“You’re hurt,” Hermione said as he inspected Draco’s arms and neck, “You have a lot of scratches. What happened?” 

Draco rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, “I scraped myself while getting away from the devil’s snare. For a few moments I forgot what it was. Stupid of me, really.”

Ron ruffled Draco’s hair, “S’okay mate, people forget things.”

Hermione rolled her eyes, “You mean like you, Ronald? Honestly, you would have died if it weren’t for me and Harry.”

“Well—we weren’t talking about me, were we?”

Harry let out a laugh and then turned to the large obelisk, “So, what do you make of this, Draco? Any ideas? It’s definitely Uncle Moony’s challenge.”

Hermione frowned and looked around the room, “How do you know?”

“The full moon,” Harry and Draco said together without looking away from the pillar. 

“The full—what does the moon have to do with Professor Lupin?”

Harry and Draco exchanged a knowing smile, “Oh,” Harry said, “nothing special. He just really likes the phases of the moon.”

“You could say he goes out every full moon to inspect it,” Draco added.

“I don’t—what am I not understanding?” Hermione asked, annoyance and aggravation evident in her tone.

“Yeah, normally I’m the only daft one here,” Ron added.

“Look, we can discuss Uncle Moony’s various issues and complications with the lunar cycle once we get out of here. Hermione, do you think we could go back through the other rooms?”

“Probably. But not all of us. There were only three brooms in the last chamber.”

“Ok. Draco, Ron, and you will go back. I’ll stay here and try to get through to Snape and hold him off. You three can get Dumbledore.”

“No way!” 

“Absolutely not!”

“Are you mental?”

“It’s the only good plan!” Harry replied angrily.

“We’ll all go,” Draco said calmly, “And in the event that one or more of us is injured, then someone will take those people back and get Dumbledore. My guess is that James and Sirius already know you left the house, Harry. Unless you remembered to deactivate the floo alarm?”

“The floo alarm?”

“Yeah. The alarm on personal floo fireplaces? The ones parents set up so their kids can’t sneak out? Have—have you never tried to sneak out at night?” 

Ron nodded, “My parents set up a strict one after they caught Fred and George coming back at two in the morning one day.”

“How am I just now hearing about this?”

“Well—not to be rude,” Draco said, “But you’ve always been a—a rule lover. You always followed the rules too much as a kid. So, probably, James never put one on until now. But, in any case, you tripped the alarm so I’m sure they’re rushing here now.”

“Who knows how long they’ll take though. What do you guys think we need to do?”

Hermione examined the pillar and the hole inside of it before walking along the opposite wall and touching the stones placed there. Harry watched as she closely inspected a few of them, brushing her fingers over something carved into the rock. 

“There’s carvings here. I think they’re runes but I don’t know what they mean. I’ve never studied runes.”

“Something our Hermione doesn’t know?” Ron said sarcastically, “Someone kill me because the world is ending.”

“Ha-ha. Very funny,” Hermione said as she turned to Draco, “Do you know what they say?”

Draco frowned and examined the runes, “Well, this one says ‘hello’. And that one says ‘full moon’ and this one says ‘stone’…they don’t make any sense to me.”

“Is there one that says ‘open’?” Hermione asked as she moved closer to the wall with Draco.

“Er—this one,” he said hesitantly as he pointed at a stone on the wall.

Hermione carefully touched the stone and ran her fingers over the markings. Then, testing her theory, she applied pressure and pushed the stone into the wall. They heard a churning noise, like a pipe turning on, but nothing happened. Hermione frowned and glanced around the room. “Did you guys hear that?”

Harry and Ron nodded as they looked around the room for the source of the noise. 

“Guess it was a coincidence?” Harry suggested as he started walking across the room, the bottom of his pants dampening. As he walked passed the pillar, he brushed against it, causing it to move to the side slightly with a rough, grinding noise. 

“Wait, that moves?” Ron asked surprised, “Why would that move if we’re supposed to push the stones on the wall?”

Draco frowned and walked back over to the pillar, his trainers dampening from the puddles on the floor. He carefully pushed the pillar to the left, letting it stand directly in front of the half-moon. “And why the phases of the moon? What purpose do they serve besides decoration?”

“Wait! Stop moving the pillar!” Hermione cried from the wall, “Look! It magnifies the light from the moon. It’s landing on a stone.”

“Hey,” Ron said as Harry and Draco ran over to the wall, “Is no one going to mention all the water on the floor?” Ron lifted his foot off the ground, revealing the water had now completely engulfed his shoes.

Harry frowned and looked down at his shoes, “I mean, there were puddles—but why would it be getting deeper?”

Without warning, Draco pushed the stone on the wall and the group heard the grinding pipe noise again. This time the effect of their mistake was evident as the water level began rising more drastically. Within a minute it had risen to their knees. At this rate they would only have 10 minutes before the room filled completely and they drowned. 

“Stop. Pushing. Buttons!” Harry shouted, ending every word as if it were its own sentence, “Stop! We need to figure this out! What do we know about this puzzle?”

“Well, we know that the runes are stone buttons on the wall and we can push them. but if we push the wrong one the water level starts rising faster,” Hermione supplied. 

Draco nodded, “And if we move the pole around the room, it enhances the light from the different moons. And that light lands on different stones.”

“So we need to get the right moon for the right stone,” Ron finished, “But which one?”

“That’s it! Ron, you’re a genus!” Harry shouted as he slapped his hand on Ron’s back before running to the pillar. The water was up to his chest now, making it difficult to move through the room, but he managed to move the pillar so that the opening was directly in front of the full moon. “Uncle Moony would have definitely made it the full moon! It makes sense!”

Draco quickly followed the beam of light to the rune stone on the wall and pushed it, “Brilliant! This should—” Draco was cut off as the water level quickly increased and rose to his shoulders, “What—bloody hell! But the full moon—it made sense!”

“Why would that make sense? Why would the full moon be that important to Professor Lupin?” Hermione shouted as she carefully tread water next to Draco.

“He’s a werewolf—he changes during the full moon,” Harry explained.

Hermione and Ron cried out in shock, their eyes wide. 

“He—he’s a werewolf? And Dumbledore lets him teach?” Hermione asked, outraged.

“Yes, yes. He’s dangerous two nights out of the month. Get over it and help us with this puzzle! We can deal with your prejudices later,” Harry scolded.

“Why would he want it to be the full moon though? Wouldn’t he change on those days?” Ron asked as he swam to the pillar, “Wouldn’t he want it to be any day but the full moon?”

“Or no moon at all,” Draco said slowly, “That’s it! Ron, push it to the new moon slot.”

“But then there won’t be any light!” Ron objected.

“Just do it!” Hermione shouted.

Ron rolled his eyes and slowly pushed the pilar through the water until it was placed in front of the new moon. Suddenly, the room around them brightened, revealing a streak of darkness emanating from the stone pilar and landing directly on a stone obscured by the water. Harry, who was closest, quickly dove down and pushed the stone that was engulfed by the darkness. As soon as he clicked it he felt himself being sucked out through an opening as the water poured out of the room. 

“Brace yourselves!” Draco yelled as all of them were sucked out of the room.

~ID~

James, Remus, Sirius, and McGonagall dashed through the castle. Lanterns blazed to life as they ran, illuminating their way. All four had their wands out and ready, preparing for the absolute worst as they burst into Fluffy’s chambers and all four sent stunning spells at the now-conscious dog. Fluffy let out a loud yelp as he collapsed to the floor, unconscious once again.

James flicked his wand and Fluffy’s large paw levitated off of the trapdoor opening, “Everyone in.”

“No!” McGonagall shouted as she grabbed Sirius by the robes, stopping him from jumping, “There’s devil’s snare at the bottom. Hold on, I’ll create a barrier so we don’t touch the vines. We’ll be able to walk across it and into the second chamber.”

McGonagall pointed her wand into the opening and made a few complicated movements with her wand and then nodded, “It’ll be secure and soft for the landing. Go! And remember, when you get to my chess board, you don’t actually need to play, you just need to say ‘checkmate’. The children won’t know that though and could be injured from playing. The pieces are designed to kill their opponents, not go easy on them.”

James, Remus, and Sirius nodded at McGonagall as they all jumped into the open hole. 

“Hey it really was cushioned,” Sirius said as he patted the invisible landing the three of them were sitting on. 

“We don’t have time to enjoy the luxuriousness of Minnie’s cushioned landing, Padfoot! Let’s go!” James yelled as he stood up on the platform and began making his way toward the door. 

Remus bent over and helped Sirius up, “This isn’t the time to play around. Have Minerva make another one for you to play with later.”

“Yeah, yeah. James! Are you catching the key?” Sirius said as he ran after his best friend. 

~ID~

“I’ll go on. You stay here with Ron,” Harry argued.

Hermione shook her head, “He’ll be fine. You’ll need help for the last two challenges, Harry.”

“I’ll be fine! Look, you take him back up to the castle and find Dumbledore. He’ll be able to help.”

“Absolutely not, Harry. We can move him out of the way and he’ll be fine.”

“Hermione would you just—” Harry froze, “Did you hear that?”

Hermione frowned, “Hear what?”

Harry shushed Hermione and pulled her and Draco behind a chunk of a broken pawn, “Stay down,” he whispered.

The three children crouched behind the white stone as they heard several footsteps racing into the room. The footsteps slowed as they approached what Harry assumed was the chess board. 

“Ron!” they heard a voice shout as the footsteps sped up, “Padfoot, is he ok?”

“Uncle Sirius?” Harry whispered to Hermione as he peeked out from behind the stone. From around the corner Harry was able to see his dad and uncles huddled around Ron, “Distract them. Come on Draco!”

“Harry where are you—” she watched as Harry crept behind another chunk of stone, heading toward the door. She looked silently at Draco, pleading him to stay. He frowned and shook his head, looking back at Harry and then at her. Then, he too carefully crept towards the door.

“Boys!” she quickly popped her head out from behind the stone, “Mr. Potter and Black! Professor Lupin! You scared me.”

The three men looked toward her and Remus stood up and quickly made his way to her side, “Hermione! Thank Merlin you’re safe. Where’s Harry?” 

“He—he—er—” she stammered.

James’ face paled, “He went on ahead, didn’t he? Remus, what’s next?”

Remus thought for a moment, “I think it’s Quirrell’s task. But, if whomever is after the Stone has already been through there, he won’t have to do anything. He won’t make it passed Snape’s task.”

“What about Ron? He’s injured! And—and I’m injured too,” she lied, “I—my ankle, I think I broke it.”

Sirius made his way over to Hermione to examine her ankle while Hermione hoped beyond hope that Remus was right and there was truly only one task standing before Harry and Draco.

~ID~

Harry and Draco dashed through the next chamber and through an unlocked door. The smell washed over them, causing them to gag and for Harry to nearly vomit from the stench.

“Merlin—what is that?” Draco gagged.

Harry pointed ahead of them to a large figure on the ground, “Troll. Unconscious.”

Draco grabbed Harry’s robe and dragged him through the room and into the next, “C’mon.”

Once they were in the next hall both boys gasped for fresh air. Harry was doubled over, his hands resting on his bent legs as he tried to clear his sinuses of the putrid scent that had assaulted them. 

“What in Merlin’s—”

“I think that was a cave troll. They smell worse than mountain trolls,” Draco explained, “What’s on in here?”

For the first time Harry took in his surroundings and noticed the table full of bottles with different colored liquids. Laying next to the seven bottles was a piece of parchment written on in a familiar handwriting. Harry watched as flames burst in each doorway, blocking their exit from either direction. Harry noted the drastic difference in color, one was black and the other, purple. Draco carefully picked up the parchment and read through the script and frowned. 

“Maybe we should have brought Hermione. She’s much better at riddles than I am.”

“What’s it say?” Harry asked as he looked over Draco’s shoulder. He was able to make out the words.

Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind.

Two of us will help you, whichever you would find.

One among us nine will let you move ahead.

Another will transport the drinker back instead.

Two among our number hold nettle wine.

Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.

Two more in line contain the poison’s cure.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here for evermore.

To help you in your choice, we give you these clues five:

First, however slyly the poison tries to hid

You will always find nettle wine on its left side.

Second, different are those who stand at either end.

But if you would move onwards, neither is your friend;

Third, as you see clearly, all are different size.

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Fourth, the second from the left and the second on the right

Are safety once you taste them, though different at first sight.

Fifth, safety lies in numbers, on the right and in the middle,

You’ll know them only if you can solve my riddle.

“I have no idea what it’s saying. Do you?”

“I think so? I think two bottles are nettle wine, two are antidotes to the poisons, one will let you go forward, and one will send you back. But—to figure out which is which? I’ll need a minute.”

“I think you have about thirty seconds,” Harry warned as he tried desperately to see through the flames, “Or however long Hermione can stall them for.”

Harry watched as Draco read through the paper and pointed at different bottles, opening their lids and sniffing their contents. Some of the lids he left off, a few he closed back up. Finally, Draco turned to Harry, a frown on his face. 

“Well, I have two possible answers,” he said as he pointed, “This one is definitely the one that will take you back through the black fire. And this one is definitely an antidote to the poison. But these two—one is a poison and the other will take you through the purple flames.”

“Well, which is which?” Harry asked desperately.

“I—I don’t know. your guess is as good as mine. We’ll have to try each of them to find out for sure.”

“What do we do for the person who drinks the poison?”

“Pour the antidote down his throat,” Draco said, shrugging. 

“And just—just leave them here?”

Draco held up the black potion, “We can get back out to James, Remus, and Sirius with this.”

Harry frowned, “Which do you think is the poison?”

He held up the larger bottle, “I think it’s this one. But I’m not—”

Before Draco could finish Harry had snatched the bottle from his grasp and downed a mouthful of the amber liquid. The effect was instantaneous. Harry immediately doubled over, his stomach churning, blood seeping from his nose as he fell to the floor.

“Harry!” a voice shouted as they burst through the black flames, “Harry! What happened?” 

James stared in shock at his son, watching the blood drip from Harry’s mouth. Draco quickly handed James the antidote and watched as he inspected the bottle before shoving the liquid down Harry’s throat. 

While James was distracted, and Draco knew Harry was safe, he quickly downed the remainder of the potion. An icy feeling trickled from his head down to his toes as the potion began working. And, without a second thought, just as Sirius entered the room, Draco stepped through the purple flames. 

“Draco!” Sirius shouted as he ran toward the purple flames. He reached out a hand, hoping to pull Draco back through, and felt an ice hot fire touch his fingertips. As he pulled back his hand, Sirius realized what he was dealing with. The frostbite quickly made its way down Sirius’ fingers. Thinking quickly, he whipped out his wand, pointed it at his skin, and whispered, “Ciepto.”

Sirius sighed in relief as his skin pinkened and warmed. He flexed his fingers and turned back to James who was propping Harry up on his chest, “What happened? And which Potion did he drink?”

“We had to stop Snape. You would have made us leave and he would have gotten the Stone! Draco went in to stop him.”

“Draco is most likely facing one of Voldemort’s supporters! How did he get in, Harry? I won’t ask again,” Sirius said in a firm and demanding voice. 

“The empty bottle on the table,” Harry said as he pointed, “We weren’t sure which one was which. One was poison and one was the way through the fire. I—I couldn’t let Draco sacrifice himself. And Snape—he likes Draco. His family is friends with Snape. Snape won’t hurt Draco but he would have hurt me.”

“You two were incredibly foolish,” James chastised, “Absolutely incredibly foolish. Did any of you think, for just one second, that the adults were able to handle this situation? That there were more protections than any of you knew about? I have one word for you, Harry James Potter. Grounded. Padfoot, go get Draco. Don’t let him get hurt.”

Sirius looked up from the now full bottle, “Already on it, Prongs. Get the rest of the kids to safety.”

James nodded as Sirius tipped the contents of the bottle into his mouth and stepped through the flames. 

~ID~

McGonagall paced around the third-floor corridor, her heart nearly beating out of her chest as she waited for anything—news, events, Dumbledore; whatever would happen first. At every sound, including her own footsteps sometimes, she glanced around the hallway, hoping that all was well again, only to be disappointed in the lack of change. 

Then, the door guarding Fluffy’s chamber burst open, revealing a disheveled Remus Lupin, an exhausted James Potter, a half-dead Harry Potter, a barely conscious Ron Weasley, and a terrified Hermione Granger. 

McGonagall rushed over to Remus and assisted him in helping Ron make his way out of the room, “What happened? Where are Sirius and Mr. Malfoy?” 

James’ eyes flashed a deep, stormy blue, “In the mirror room. Draco went through the flame and Sirius had to go after him.”

McGonagall clapped a hand over her mouth, “He didn’t! Mr. Weasley, Harry—what happened?”

“Ron got injured on your chess board and Harry drank the poison in Snapes room. I guess they couldn’t solve the riddle,” James chastised. 

“They, they made it through my chess board?” McGonagall asked, her mouth wide, “Ms. Granger, how did you manage to beat me?”

“Oh,” Hermione smiled softly, “It wasn’t me, Professor. I’m rubbish at chess.”

“Then who—Harry?”

Harry shook his head, “Nah, Nana. I’ve never beat you in chess. You know that. It was Ron.”

“Mr.—Ron? How—”

Ron frowned and shook his head, “Rookie mistakes, Professor. Rookie mistakes.”

McGonagall’s lips formed a straight line across her face, “Rookie—I’ll have you know, Mr. Weasley, I am a chess champion—”

“Minerva,” said a soft, calm voice from behind the group, “Now is not the time to argue your chess expertise. Now, please explain again where Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Black are?”

Everyone turned, shocked to see Dumbledore standing tall and calm before them in the hallway. James paled and pointed into the doorway, “They’re—they—”

“Draco went into the mirror room so Harry didn’t have to, didn’t he?” Dumbledore asked calmly.

Everyone nodded and watched as he calmly strode into Fluffy’s room and stepped into the hole in the floor. 

~ID~

Draco walked slowly down the amphitheater-like stairs, his eyes glued to the large, ornate mirror standing in the middle of the open floor. He immediately recognized the mirror and the person standing in front of it. 

“Professor Quirrell?” Draco questioned, “Where’s—where’s Snape?”

“He, unfortunately, couldn’t be here with me today. Did you receive your letter from your father, young Draco? Have you come to assist me or thwart me?”

“But, you—you’re after the stone?”

“Don’t be daft boy! Of course I’m after the Stone! The Dark Lord instructed me to get it and I shall.”

“But Snape—”

“Snape, Snape, Snape. Yes, he was certainly unable to stop meddling in things that he shouldn’t be meddling in. It’s no wonder no one suspected p-p-poor st-stuttering p-professor Quirrell next to a known Death Eater,” Quirrell turned around to look at Draco and pointed his wand at him, “So, Draco Malfoy, have you come to assist me or inhibit me? I shall warn you, there isn’t a good outcome if you’ve chosen the latter.”

“I—I—” Draco thought quickly, “How can I help you, Sir?” Draco quickly added a low bow to his question, not making eye contact with the man who had been his professor. 

Quirrell assessed him for a moment before turning back to the mirror, “Do you know anything about this mirror, Draco?”

“Some, Sir.”

“Tell me, how does it work?”

“Well,” Draco gulped as he walked closer to Quirrell, “It—it shows you what you want. Your heart’s deepest desires.”

“I can see it,” Quirrell whispered, “I can see myself holding the stone. But I can’t find it! Show me where it is!”

Draco flinched as Quirrell yelled at him. Then, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Sirius creeping down the stairs behind them, his wand pointed directly at Quirrell.

“Sir,” Draco interrupted, if he didn’t act fact, Quirrell would see Sirius and it would all be over, “Sir, could I try? Maybe—maybe it—”

Draco’s eyes widened as a raspy, harsh voice called out from where Quirrell was standing, “Move aside!”

Quirrell’s eyes widened, “But—but sir—”

“Move aside, Quirrell! Let the boy look,” the voice hissed. 

Quirrell nodded and slowly stepped aside, allowing Draco to stand in front of the mirror. In its glass he could see Sirius had made it halfway down the stairs. He gulped and hoped he could stall Quirrell for long enough. But that voice—there was something about that voice that set him on edge, that gave him chills down to his toes.

He glanced around the room slowly before looking directly at the Mirror of Erised before him. Then, his eyes widened—what he was seeing before him in the mirror wasn’t the same as what he’d seen the last time. Last time he had seen himself with a loving family who accepted him for who he is, not who they want him to be; but this time he saw himself—he saw himself with the Philosopher’s Stone. Draco watched, wide eyed, as his mirror self held up the brilliant, red stone, and then slowly placed it into his pocket. He tried to keep his face stoic as he realized there was a new weight in his left pocket. 

Refusing to give any indication that anything had changed, Draco turned to Quirrell, “I’m sorry, Sir—I only see myself with my family.”

“He’s lying!” Hissed the mysterious voice. 

“Stupify!” Sirius shouted, his wand pointing directly at Quirrell. 

Draco watched as the jet of red light soared directly at Quirrell’s chest and was somehow deflected and ricochet to the ceiling, taking a large chunk of stone with it. 

“Ah, Mr. Black. How lovely it is to see you,” Quirrell hissed.

“Who the fuck are you?” Sirius asked, “No, seriously, who are you? I’ve never met this man.”

“No, but my master recognizes you. He knew your brother, Regulus, quite well.”

“I hate to break it to you, but your master is dead. Been dead. Not coming back.”

Quirrell laughed, a loud, hearty sound, “My master is safe and—well, I suppose well would be the word. He’s not dead, just in limbo at the moment.”

“You haven’t tried to contact him in a while, have you, bun head? If you had, you’d wonder why he hasn’t responded to you in weeks.”

“My master is with me. Always,” Quirrell said sternly, “He, quite frankly, never leaves my side.”

“Who the fuck is your master then? Because it’s not Voldemort.”

Then, the voice spoke again, “Let me see them. Show my face, Quirrell.”

“Your face?” Sirius asked the air, “Bitch I don’t even know who you are! You know what? I think it’s time you shut up. Silencio!” 

This time, the spell caught Quirrell off guard, causing him to lose his grip on his turban and attempt to shout at Sirius as the fabric fell from his head. Unknownst to Sirius, Draco could see a grotesque and misshapen face protruding from the back of Quirrell’s shaven head.

Sirius let out a bark like laugh and looked over at Draco, “You see what I did there, Draco? I made him shut up. Stupefy!” 

Quirrell raised his wand and simply flicked the spell away from him, shooting a jet of green light towards Sirius who managed to dodge the spell at the last moment.

“What the—really?” Sirius shot a jet of purple light which missed and nearly hit Draco who fell to the ground at the last moment, “Draco, hide!”

Draco quickly sought cover behind one of the large stone pillars in the room, gripping his wand tightly in his hand as he peered around the corner. He attempted to hit Quirrell with a petrifying jinx but missed and hit the wall behind him. Luckily, Quirrell was distracted.

He watched as Quirrell turned, allowing the face in the back to take control of the body and wand of Quirrell, it’s distorted, snake like features sharp and enraged.

Sirius’ eyes widened at the sight before him. Never before in his life had he seen anything so grotesque or deformed as this face was and yet he knew immediately who it was. 

“No,” Sirius whispered, “No. You’re dead!” he sent a stream of the purple fire barreling towards Quirrell/Voldemort, landing a blow on their arm.

Quirrell cradled his arm against his stomach, the voice of Voldemort ringing clear in the air, “I am not dead! I have not died! You think an infant could defeat me? Lord Voldemort?”

“Yeah, I fucking do!” Sirius sent another jet of purple flames towards Voldemort, missing him by inches. Voldemort redirected the flames, turning it back toward Sirius. Sirius flicked his wand, turning the flames to water which splashed harmlessly on him. Then, turning to Voldemort, Sirius sent a jet of lightning towards him, hitting the ground where he stood.

“Give up you fool. You are no match for me! Draco, give. Me. The. Stone! Give it to me and I shall reward you beyond your imagination.”

“No, I don’t think I will, thanks!” Draco shouted from behind the pillar as he shot another petrifying jinx at Voldemort, “Eat dirt, Moldy!”

“Moldy?” Sirius laughed, “I love it! Eat shit Moldy!” Sirius blasted a chunk of rock off the stone floor and sent it flying at Voldemort who flicked his wand and caused it to burst into miniscule chunks and sent them shooting back at Sirius. Sirius jumped behind a pillar, narrowly avoiding the stone bullets. He carefully poke his wand out from behind the pillar and caused a chasm to open under Voldemort’s feet. Sirius watched in glee as Voldemort fell into the hole and then in horror as he used his wand to propel himself back out of it. 

Voldemort formed a stream of light acting like a whip out of his wand and sent it snapping at Sirius, cutting the stone pillar into pieces. Forming a shield in front of him, Sirius managed to avoid most of the damage that could have been caused, but took a serious cut on his chest, blood pouring out of it. 

“Fuck.” He healed it the best he could and sent ropes at Voldemort, hoping to capture him or detain him. They missed, latching themselves around the Mirror of Erised. 

Just as Voldemort was preparing for another attack, a tall, bearded man stepped through the purple flames, his wand high in the air and a jet of orange light propelling toward Voldemort. 

“Ah, Tom. I was wondering who it was that had managed to get into my school. Piggybacking on a professor I see?”

“Dumbledore,” the voice hissed, “The biggest fool I’ve ever met. You didn’t even realize I was here, all this time, right under your stupid, crooked nose.”

“I must admit that I did not, Tom. I suspected, but I did not know for sure that you were here. However, I now know I need to vet my professors more thoroughly.” 

“Well, Dumbledore, another time, perhaps,” Voldemort spat as, suddenly, his face erupted from Quirrell’s body as a blood curdling shriek was heard. As the ghostly and smokey form of Voldemort severed from Quirrell’s, Quirrell fell to the ground, his body crumpled and broken.

Draco watched in horror as the ghastly form of Lord Voldemort erupted in noise and fled. 

End Notes:

Thank you for reading Ignoring Destiny! Please like, follow, and review!


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